Midnight! Pokéball Go!
by Spruceton Spook
Summary: On their way back to Pallet Town for the holidays, Ash, Misty, and Brock come across an old, decrepit mansion in the middle of the woods. They seek refuge, but is that all that they'll find there? Based on The Shining.
1. Oh, The Weather Outside Is Frightful . ....

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.  If I did, I would not be doing this right now.  Enjoy! 

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series. 

Summary:  On their way back home to Pallet for the holidays, Ash, Misty, and Brock are suffering from the intense cold.  So, when they come across an old, decrepit mansion in the middle of the woods, they'll do anything to get warmed up...

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 1:

Oh, the Weather Outside is Frightful...

            Cold. Hungry. Tired. 

            Those were the only three words that escaped out of Ash's chattering teeth as he sauntered on through the dismal, desolate woods.  He clutched Pikachu closely to his chest as the poor Pokémon shivered uncontrollably.  A few paces behind him, his pals Misty and Brock ambled on lifelessly.  

            Misty slowed occasionally to pull her backpack in front of her to check on Togepi, who was avoiding the freezing temperatures bundled up in Misty's extra clothes.  He was sleeping most of the time, but infrequently he would cry silently for some food.   

            Another strong, frigid wind blew, picking up swirls of freshly fallen leaves.  The wind never seemed to cease lately, and for about the hundredth time, Ash needed to grab his hat before it blew freely off his head.  With a heavy sigh, he stopped, set Pikachu down, and pried open the hat's adjustable tabs to make it tighter.  He groaned as he pulled the hat that was two times too small over his head. 

            Brock kept walking, but Misty had stopped with Ash.  She shivered as she watched him struggle to pull the hat down. 

            "Ash, if you make that hat any tighter, you'll cut off the circulation to your head," she warned in a shaky voice. 

            Ash picked up his freezing Pokémon once again and looked at her.  "I'm not gonna lose my hat, Misty." 

            "Then take it off.  Or be a gentleman and give it to me!  I'm freezing!"   

            Her complaining made Ash even colder.  He shrugged and began to walk again, swiftly now to catch up with Brock.  

            Misty jogged alongside him in a desperate attempt to warm her body.  The cold was really starting to get to her.  She didn't mind it at first, because it wasn't really that bad up until about two days ago, when the temperatures decided to drop a tremendous twenty degrees.  Sleeping outdoors in it was the worst.  Last night they had no choice, there was no Pokémon Center or town nearby.  Today, they were hoping on reaching the next town, where they could find some shelter, and perhaps a bite to eat. 

            They had been heading back to Pallet Town for about two weeks now.  Ash and the others were well on there way to various locations involved with the Johto League, but Ash was still unsuccessful with winning a badge.  All he had on his mind lately was being home again for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and taking a well deserved vacation.  He had wanted to win a badge first, but since they had been far from Pallet, Brock insisted that they would have to start heading back if Ash wanted to get there in time.  Reluctant at first, it was the cold weather that had really convinced Ash to forget about the badge, and concentrate on thinking about the comforts of his house. 

            Now mid-November, the three were all bundled up in the warmest clothes they had with them, which were really not that suitable for such cold temperatures in the first place.  Misty was very unprepared, and as soon as the cold weather hit and there was a town nearby, she purchased as many warm shirts as her money allowed her. Ash and Brock both had one warm outfit packed each, but when Misty had suggested they buy more clothes, they refused.  Brock told her there were more important things to spend their money on.   

            Even though Misty was dressed the warmest, she complained the most out of all of them.  She was not used to traveling in the cold, and the mountains surrounding the Johto territory were not that appealing.  She especially hated it, though, when they were traveling through lonely, uncivilized areas, such as the woods they were in now, where they could freeze to death and no one would ever find them.  

            "That's it!" she cried loudly, lowering herself into a squatting position with her arms around her.  Ash and Brock stopped and looked back at her. 

            "What's the matter?" Ash asked. 

            "It's too cold to walk anymore!" she replied, embracing herself.  "Brock, can you start a fire or something?!  I can't feel my hands anymore!" 

            Brock lowered his heavy backpack to the ground. "I know it's cold, but if you want to get to the next town, we can't keep making little pit stops like this!" 

            Misty didn't answer.  She looked up at Ash, noticing that he himself was looking pretty worn also.  She smiled slightly. 

            "Ash is cold, too!" 

            Ash stood there shivering, but said determinedly, "No I'm not." 

            Misty sighed, and Brock shrugged, reaching into his back pocket for the matches. 

            Misty smiled nicely this time. "Thank you! Finally!" 

            Ash decided to sit down with her and Brock began to make a small mound of twigs and sticks to use as the fire.  Misty crawled over to Brock's bag, and pulled out large, insulated blanket that she had bought for them a few towns back.  It was too large to keep in her bag, and Brock truly "loved" carrying it for them.  Misty sat down and wrapped it around herself as she watched Brock start the fire. 

            "Hey, don't hog it!" Ash said, grabbing a handful of the blanket.   

            "What are you talking about?" Misty shot back.  "You said you weren't cold, so too bad!" 

            Ash ignored her, and pulled at the blanket even harder.  Feeling bad, Misty released it and let him slip in underneath it.   

            "Come on inside, Pikachu," said Ash, letting Pikachu curl up in a piece of it. 

            "Pika," sighed Pikachu with relief as he closed his eyes.  It was the warmest he had been the whole day. 

            Brock finished the fire, and the three exhausted trainers sat there speechless for about ten minutes.  Finally, Brock reached into one of his pockets, and pulled out the so called handy map (which had gotten them lost more times than it did to help them find places), and looked at it skeptically. 

            "Guys, I don't know if we'll get to the next town before dark," he said downheartedly, looking first at Ash and then at Misty. 

            Misty groaned. "I am not sleeping out here tonight!" 

            Brock shrugged. "Well, we might not have a choice," he replied, folding the map back up. "Unless. . .we get going now, and keep up a strong pace." 

            Misty hopped up.  "Fine, let's go then!" 

            Ash looked at Brock.  "God help her if she ever wants to climb Mt. Everest," he said with a snicker. 

            The three packed up as quickly as they could, and started out once again.  As they put more of the forest behind them, it began to open up more, and before they knew it, they came across a large open field.  What they saw next completely astonished them.  Right before their eyes stood a massive, but awful looking mansion. Its yard was weed-strewed and battered, but it did take away from the mansion's depressing, dilapidated appearance.   

            "What is this place?" Ash asked, looking up at the mansion's dark windows.  They stood out easily against the mansion's white, chipping exterior.  Some windows still had red shutters attached to them, but others were bare. 

            "Looks like some sort of mansion, or a hotel," answered Brock. 

            The three approached the mansion's front stoop, and Pikachu hopped out of Ash's arms to investigate. 

            Misty walked up to one of the low windows to look in.  "Think anyone's home?" she asked, glancing back at Ash and Brock. 

            Ash had already made his way up onto the mansion's front porch.  He gazed into one of the windows, but could barely make out a thing.   

            "Don't know.  It doesn't look too busy to me." 

            Brock joined Ash on the porch.  The three stood silently, but no noise came from either the mansion or the yard. 

            "Looks deserted," Brock stated.  "Or at least nobody's home right now." 

            Misty began to hop up and down excitedly.  "So I guess they wouldn't mind if we borrowed it for a while, would they?" 

            "I don't know, Misty," Ash said wearily.  "I don't think it's nice to just barge into someone's house.  Besides, how the hell are we gonna get into the place?" 

            "Pikachu, pika chu pi!" Pikachu yelped wildly, hopping up and down at the front door. 

            "What's up, Pikachu?" Ash asked, kneeling down. 

            "Pi!" he replied, pointing up at the doorknob. 

            "I think Pikachu's telling us to try the door," said Brock. 

            Ash stood up, and grasped the doorknob in his hand.   He slowly turned it.  It wouldn't budge at first, but Ash could feel that it was not locked.  Tightening his grip on the knob, Ash jammed at it, and the door swung forcefully open, revealing a dark and uninviting corridor before them. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

            "Jessie, I'm cold!" James whined, shivering irrepressibly.   

            He, as was Jessie, was dressed only in his Team Rocket uniform.  Although he had the full advantage of being completely covered, he tried his best not to feel bad for Jessie, who he caught often shaking.   It was her idea in the first place to keep going, while he and Meowth insisted on giving up for a while and returning to the headquarters, where they could acquire some warmer clothing.  Jessie refused; they were this close now, and if they wanted a Christmas bonus this year, they would at least attempt to bring Pikachu back home with them. 

            Jessie, James, and Meowth were crouched behind a bush.  For the past three hours since they had first caught sight of the twerps, they followed them silently, waiting for the perfect moment to attack.  The cold had certainly set them back, however.  Jessie tried not to show it, but James could tell she was suffering. 

            "Jessie, I'm cold!" he repeated, although more emphasized this time. 

            Jessie glared back at him.  "Quit whining, James!  We can't give up now.  We're hot on those twerps' trail!" 

            "Hot isn't exactly the word I'd use in the situation," Meowth mumbled. 

            "You two are such wimps!" she cried, returning her attention back to Ash and the others.  "Hey, look what they're doing now." 

            "Huh?" James and Meowth said simultaneously, as they focused on the three unsuspectful kids prowling around the mansion. 

            "What are they doing there?" Meowth asked. 

            Jessie shook her head, and pulled out her binoculars.  Through them, she could make out Ash fingering with the doorknob.  She gasped slightly to herself. 

            "I can't believe it," she muttered. 

            "What is it?" James replied. 

            Meowth noticed the same thing.  "They're breaking into da joint!" 

            "Really?"  James grabbed the binoculars out of Jessie hand.  He smiled energetically. 

            "Hey, maybe we can break in there too and get warm!" he suggested. 

            Jessie grabbed the binoculars back.  "Are you crazy?" she exclaimed.  She stood up.   

            "Come on," she ordered as she began to walk towards the mansion.  James and Meowth were pacing slowly behind her. 

            "What do you have in mind, Jess?" James asked, suddenly amazed at the size of the grandeur before them. 

            "Something doesn't seem right," she replied.  "Those goody two-shoes would never do something illegal like that.  There must be something else we don't know about." 

            Jessie stopped in front of the front porch, which, moments ago, was occupied by their arch-enemies.  James stopped too, but Meowth walked straight up onto the porch.  He glared through one of the windows. 

            "Don't see them anywhere in there," he said. 

            "Fine," Jessie replied.  "For now, let's stay low." 

            James began to moan. Even though he knew Jessie was just as cold as he was, he wasn't going to protest.  Jessie had something up her sleeve, and by this time they were ready to try anything.  They would have to succeed some time, and maybe the hundredth time was the charm. 

TO BE CONTINUED. . . .


	2. The Little Hotel of Horrors

Last time, Ash, Misty, and Brock came across an old mansion in the middle of the woods.  Chilled to the bone, they decide to seek some shelter in the mysterious house.

Author's Note:  There will be more Team Rocket soon, I swear!  All rights for  "The Shining" belong to Stephen King.  Sorry for mocking your wonderful story!  Oh, and by the way, I do not own Pokémon.  If I did, Ash and Misty would have already confessed their love. ^_^

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Summary:  Ash, Misty, and Brock enter the strange hotel, thinking that it's deserted.  But they are dead wrong....

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

Spruceton Spook

Part 2:

The Little Hotel of Horrors

            Ash, Misty, and Brock were instantly relieved by the blast of warm air that had hit them suddenly when they entered the mansion.  Somewhere a furnace was blowing out that warm air, which made Brock feel a little better about the place.   It meant that someone must be living there, though he was still uncertain.

            The outside appearance of the mansion was nothing like the inside; the three found themselves amidst a gorgeous and well-kept interior, warm and inviting, yet dark.  Beautiful antique throw rugs covered the floor, and a sparkling clear chandelier hung from the ceiling of the main entrance-way.  Paintings dotted the walls, all of mysterious yet kind looking people.  Dimly-it lamps provided the only light, guiding their way through the door.

            Misty smiled from ear to ear.  "Would you look at this place!" she exclaimed ecstatically, her eyes darting from one section of the room to another.

            "Wow, I've never been in a place like this before!" Ash replied.

            "Me neither!" Brock put in.

            Misty still felt queasy.  "Are you sure we shouldn't of knocked first?" she asked, looking distrustfully at Ash and Brock.

            Brock sighed.  "Well, it's better late then never." Taking a deep breath, he shouted as loud as his lungs could handle.  "HEY!  ANYBODY HOME?"

            Silence.  Ash began to shout the same.  Then Ash and Brock shouted together. Still no answer.

            "Hey, look at this!" Ash shouted.  He rushed over to a beautiful wooden counter that stretched throughout the length of the hall.  On top of it stood a dusty, old cash register, one that you might see in an old movie.  Behind the desk was a large bulletin board, and out of it jutted large, golden hooks, each delicately holding a brass key.

            "This place must be a hotel!" Brock realized.  "But...a really depressing one."

            "I don't think anyone's here," Misty said softly.  She pulled her backpack in front of her and gently scooped out Togepi.  Still sleepy and slightly cold, the small Pokémon lay quietly in her warm arms.

            Pikachu jumped up onto the front counter.  He spotted a front desk bell, and began to hit it repeatedly.  The others stood in silence, but no one arrived to help them.

            "I think you're right, Misty," Ash agreed, finally stopping Pikachu from eventually breaking the bell.  He looked over at Misty, but became puzzled by her even more puzzling expression.

            Misty was not satisfied.  "This is creepy, guys.  Somebody must be home.  They wouldn't leave a fire in the fireplace now, would they?"

            As she asked this, Ash and Brock followed her pointed finger into the direction it was heading.  Inside the accompanying room to the left of the lobby was a huge sitting room.  It was by far one of the most spectacular rooms either one of them had ever seen.  The fireplace stretched up to the high ceiling, and inside sure enough raged a blazing fire.  

            "Pika!" Pikachu shouted, sprinting towards the fire.  He settled himself down near it, and called Ash over.

            Ash, Misty, and Brock strode over to the fireplace.  Misty closed her eyes and smiled as she felt the warm fire take over her body.  It was the warmest she had been in days.  She set Togepi down near Pikachu and turned back to the two boys.  She sighed heavily and sat, also.

            "We might as well get warmed up," said Brock, joining Misty on the large, fuzzy throw rug.

Ash said nothing, and sat down also, letting the fire warm every aching, frozen part of his body.  And although he still felt uneasy about the whole situation, he could not deny his need for an escape from the outside weather.

            They sat in silence once again, each of them carefully observing the room.  Misty looked uneasy, and Ash smirked at her with his teasing grin.

            "You scared, Misty?" Ash asked, grinning away.

            "NO!" she snarled, turning her head the other way.

            "Stop," Brock mumbled, bringing a finger up to his lips.

            Ash continued his taunting.  It took away from the weird feelings he was encountering sitting in a stranger's home.  "What, ya think there's a mad murderer watching our every move?  Waiting for the best time to attack?"

            Misty growled at him, then lunged out at him, knocking him over.  He continued to laugh.  

            "Shut up, Ash!  I'm warning you!"

            Brock reached over and grasped a hand around Ash's mouth.  "Stop being so loud, guys!"

            Ash stopped, and looking perplexed at him.  "What's up?"

            Breathing hard, Brock's eyes darted around the room.  "It's too quiet here," he stated.

            Misty nodded, and sat up on her knees.  "It is too quiet.  That's why I'm worried."

            Ash only laughed a bit more, looking at the frightened expressions on his friends' faces.  "Would you calm down? No one's home but us!"

            "Well, maybe there WAS someone home," Brock said, shaking his head.

            "What's that supposed to mean?" Misty asked in a high-pitched scared voice.  She gripped her arms around herself tightly.

            Ash just gulped.

            "Well..." Brock started, just as Pikachu sprang up from his peaceful slumber and looked caustiously at the room enterance.   His body stiffened, and the hairs on his back stood on end.  Misty watched him horrified, and Ash looked inquistively at his Pokémon friend.

            "What's the matter, Pikachu?" Ash asked, his voice shaking.  

            "Pika pi," Pikachu simply said, glancing up at Ash.  "Chu, pika pika."

            "Huh?" Ash asked.  Before Pikachu could tell Ash exactly why he didn't feel alone in this hotel, the sounds of footsteps on the floor above them began to sound, softly at first, then quite louder.

            Misty didn't scream, but just uttered a sound of disbelief and fear.  She bolted up and grabbed Brock's shoulders as she huddled close beside him for protection.  Brock put a hand on her shoulder and stood up.

            Ash began to shake and he grabbed Pikachu as the footsteps continued, only now they sounded more distant.

            "What...the...hell...is that?" Misty asked between huge breaths.

            Ash just shook his head.  He held Pikachu tightly in his arms, and could feel the poor Pokémon shaking in terror.  "Well, whatever it was, I don't think I want to be here to find out!" he exclaimed, suddenly bolting.  Brock seized him immediatly by the collar.

            "No Ash, wait," he ordered, holding him firmly.  "Just calm down a moment."

            Suddenly, the footsteps started up again.  This time, though, the were much louder...and much nearer.  Ash's heart pounded.  Brock's grip on Ash remained, only his hands began to clench tighter.  Misty held Togepi close to her chest, and breathed deep, heavy breaths.   She still stayed where Brock had been originally when she had grabbed hold of him.  Whoever or whatever those footsteps belonged to were coming down the main staircase just outside the room.

            Misty suddenly shrieked.  It pierced Ash and Brock's ears with tremendous force, and their hands immediatly flew up to them.  They jumped back abruptly as they noticed a man rush into the room.  He himself clamped his ears shut, but now Ash and Brock put their screams in as well.

            Pikachu's nerves finally went hay-wire, and as the man entered the room, he set off a huge bolt of electricity, which shot in all directions, reaching every corner of the room.  It shocked everyone in sight, and when the electricity ended, the four unaware humans lay fried but pretty much okay.

            Ash shot up immediatly, and glanced over at the charred man before him.  "Oh my God, sir, I'm so sorry!" he said at once, running over to him.

            Ash looked down.  The man's eyes were shut and his teeth were clenched hard.  He opened one eye which directed itself towards Ash's stunned face.  Ash gasped, but the man smiled at him, and slowly lifted himself up.

            "It's okay," he said gently, but with a little bit of effect in his voice from the sudden thunderbolt.  "Nice Pikachu you got there."

            Ash smiled, looking down at Pikachu.  "Uh, thanks.  I guess."

            The man smiled once again, this time nodding a hello to Misty and Brock.  He was about sixty years old, as the kids observed, and he had a friendly face to him.  He was dressed in casual house clothing, which by now was a little staticy on account of Pikachu.  "Sorry I scared you kids.  I didn't know anyone was here.  Wanted to see if my fire was out yet."

            Misty grinned, her heart slowly returning to its natural beat.  "That's okay.  We...we didn't know if anyone was here either."

            The man laughed, walking over to the fire.  He began to poke at the flaming pieces of wood, which had little left to them.  "I tend to get tired lately.  I rarely get customers any more."

            "I can see that," Ash murmured to himself.

            "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself.  My name's Mr. Vrenden, and welcome to Fireside's Warmth Hotel."

            "Well, Mr. Vrenden, you sure do have a nice hotel," Ash exclaimed.  "Sorry my friends and I barged in.  You see, we were kinda cold, and..."

            Mr. Vrenden waved his hand.  "No problem, it's fine.  My door's always open to travellers."

            "Thanks!" Brock said.  

            Mr. Vrenden offered the kids a seat, and they sat down.  "So, where you kids headed?"

            "Pallet Town," Ash answered.  "Oh, I'm sorry...I'm Ash.  And this is Brock and Misty," he added, pointing to each of his friends.

            "Ah, Pallet Town," replied Mr. Vrenden.  "Very nice town.  You visiting someone there?"

            "No, going home," Ash answered.  "For the holidays.  We've been on a Pokémon journey for the past couple months."

            Mr. Vrenden's face lit up at the mention of the journey. "Johto League, I presume?"

            Ash nodded.  "That's right!  I've caught two Pokémon already, but I haven't earned any badges yet."

            "And you guys?  How've you been doing?" Mr. Vrenden asked, looking over at Misty and Brock.

            Brock laughed.  "Nah, we just tag along to make sure he doesn't get into any trouble."

            Scratching his chin, Mr. Vrenden sat back in his chair. "I remember the Johto League.  So many energenic trainers I used to battle."

            Ash looked at him shocked.  "Battle?"

            Mr. Vrenden nodded.  "Sure!  I used to be a gym leader a couple years back.  Way before I used to run this hotel."

            "Oh, cool!" Ash said happily.

            "My father left this hotel to me when he died.  I didn't want to let him down, so I retired from Pokémon training to run it full time.  Only now, I'm not so sure I want to run it anymore." Mr. Vrenden looked glumly at his feet.

            "Why not?" Misty asked.

            "Oh, I don't know," replied Mr. Vrenden.  "Business hasn't been so good, and I just don't have the energy anymore."

            "Well, it is quite a beautiful hotel," Misty said, trying to lift Mr. Vrenden's feelings.  He didn't reply, but looked admiringly over at the kids.

            "So, I suppose you'd like a room," he implied, standing up.

            "That would be great!" Ash said.  "But...we--we don't have much money."  They did in fact have a couple of fifties with them, but Ash expected the rate of this gorgeous hotel to be through the roof.

            Mr. Vrenden gazed down at the young Pokémon trainer, and smiled daintily.  "No charge."

            Ash jumped up. "Really?  That's great!"  He glanced over to Misty and Brock, who were beaming.

            "Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed happily.

            Ash went over to the fireplace to collect his bag, while Misty and Brock did the same.  Mr. Vrenden watched Ash playfully shove his friends, and them laughing, shoving back at him.  They were going to be warm tonight, and they were happy.  

            "Say," Mr. Vrenden said, pointing to Ash.  "I know you said you didn't have a badge yet, right?"

            Ash nodded and shrugged.  "Was kinda hoping to bring one home to show to my mom, but, well, ya know."

            Mr. Vrenden winked at him.  "Well, there's still time left."

            Ash looked at him weirdly.  "What d'you mean?" he asked, as Pikachu leapt up onto his shoulder.

            "I just happen to have some of my old badges left," Mr. Vrenden told him.  "I'm pretty sure they're still good, that is, if you want to battle me for one."

            Ash's smile grew larger and larger.  "Really?  I can win my first Johto badge from you?"

            Mr. Vrenden smiled and nodded.  "Of course, you would have to challenge me for a battle..."

            "I challenge you to a Pokémon battle!" Ash shouted, making Misty and Brock jump back a few feet.

            "As you wish," replied Mr. Vrenden, motioning them to follow him.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. Ash's Unusual Battle

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon or "The Shining."  Both these belong to their respective owners.  Just thought it would be fun to combine them!  Please note:  I began to write this before Ash received his first Johto Badge.  Don't worry--I saw that episode!

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Last time, Ash, Misty, and Brock discovered that the huge mansion they had let themselves into was the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, owned by ex-gym leader Mr. Vrenden.  After guaranteed free rooms for the night, Ash challenges Mr. Vrenden to a battle for his first Johto League badge.

Summary:  Ash thinks he's battling for a badge.  But what he really gets is something he would have never expected.

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 3:

Ash's Unusual Battle

            Mr. Vrenden led Ash, Misty, and Brock down a long, beautiful hallway of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  Even though it was very dimly lit like most of the hotel, the three kids could see the gorgeous flower patterned wallpaper and many other impressive paintings on the wall.  Very antique looking furniture was placed carefully in numerous corners.  

            Ash only glanced at them briefly.  A huge smile stretched across his face from ear to ear.  He was going to battle for his first Johto Badge, and he could hardly believe it.  He looked up at Mr. Vrenden, who also looked quite pleased, and Ash figured that he must be happy to battle trainers again.  Besides them, the hotel had not another soul in it.  It confused Ash, but then he thought of the hotel's outside appearance, and wondered if that was what ward off visitors.  

            "Well, sorry to tell you this," Mr. Vrenden began, "but I really don't have much of a gym here." He smiled and laughed softly.  "However, I think this will do for now."

            He pushed open two large, beautifully wood-carved doors.  Ash, Misty, and Brock found themselves staring into what happened to be the hotel's enormous dining and reception room.  It was utterly awe-inspiring. Huge bay windows covered every inch of the back wall, displaying a magnificent view of the mountains in the distance.  Three glamorous, colossal chandeliers hung from the high ceiling.  All of the tables were conveniently pushed back into one corner of the room, with all the chairs piled neatly upside down on top of them.  

            Mr. Vrenden looked at the amazed kids.  "So, what do ya think?"

            "It's great!" Ash replied.

            "Gorgeous," added Misty.

            "This is the perfect place to battle," Brock commented.  "Very spacious."

            Mr. Vrenden nodded proudly.  "Good, I'm glad."  He looked at Ash now, who was positively glowing.  "So, ready?"

            "I'm always ready!" Ash answered determinedly, grabbing a Pokéball in his hand.

            Mr. Vrenden motioned Ash to stand at the opposite end of the dining hall.  Ash cracked his knuckles.  The smile that he had on his face a moment ago turned into his serious I'm-ready-to-battle-this-is-business look.  Pikachu stood at his feet, small electrical sparks flying from his cheeks.  The Pokémon was trying to look as ferocious as he could.   Misty and Brock grabbed two chairs from off on the tables and sat down. 

            "Come on Ash, you can do it!" Misty called to him.

            Ash gave her the thumbs-up sign.  "Don't worry, I'm going home with a badge!"

            "You're that sure of yourself?" Mr. Vrenden asked him, grinning slyly.

            Ash nodded, returning the sly grin.  "I'm experienced enough."

            "So then you can handle a one-on-one Pokémon battle?"

            Even though one-on-one battles weren't exactly Ash's favorite, he nodded.  He always liked at least a two-or-two battle so that he wasn't completely out of it after one Pokémon.  But he decided right then that it was okay.  Besides, he wasn't planning on battling that night anyway.  If he lost, he could think of it as a warm-up for the real battles he was planning.  

            "One-on-one is fine with me!" Ash said positively.  "Choose your Pokémon."

            "If you wish," Mr. Vrenden replied. With that, he tossed up a Pokéball into the air.  "Go Charmander!"

            Instantly, a rather large Charmander emerged from its Pokéball.  It stood very still, and looked seriously into the face of its opponent.  Ash smiled.  This was going to be easy.

            "Squirtle!  I choose you!" he yelled as he threw Squirtle's Pokéball into the battle.  Squirtle came out and immediately matched his opponent's glare.  

            There was no pause in beginning the battle.  Mr. Vrenden jumped in instantaneously.

            "Charmander, flame thrower now!" he commanded.  Charmander prepared to torpedo his flame of power.

            But Ash acted quickly. "Squirtle, withdraw!"

            Squirtle's head and legs were sucked in rapidly, causing the flames to hit nothing but the shell.  As soon as they were gone, Squirtle came out, looking more determined than ever.

            "Squirtle, water gun attack, now!" Ash shouted, and without hesitation Squirtle fired a blast of water at Charmander.

            The water hit Charmander right on target, and the poor Pokémon was knocked down.  It shook his head in a state of confusion from the major hit.

            "Charmander, get up and use ember!" Mr. Vrenden said.

            As Charmander wobbled around on his weak water-blasted legs, Ash took immediate advantage.

            "Squirtle, don't let Charmander get up!" Ash shouted.  "Quick!  Use skull bash!"

            Squirtle sucked his head back into his shell, and performed the most forceful skull bash attack Ash had ever seen him do.  He struck Charmander, and the Pokémon crashed to the floor.  It rolled over a few times and then stopped.  Eyes closed shut and shuddering, Charmander tried to get up again. 

            Ash knew it was over.  He glanced up at Mr. Vrenden, who looked down at his defeated Pokémon.  Surprisingly, he did not have an upset look on his face at all.  Misty and Brock noticed this as well. Finally, Charmander ceased struggling to get up.  Ash beamed as Mr. Vrenden recalled Charmander.

            "Squirtle, you did it!" Ash rejoiced as he lifted Squirtle above his head.

            "Squirtle, squirtle!" Squirtle replied happily.

            "Pika!  Pikachu!" added Pikachu.

            Misty and Brock jumped up out of their seats and began a series of whoops and hollers for Ash's triumph.  Ash looked at his friends and shot them the victory sign.  Misty and Brock nodded, and as Ash recalled Squirtle, they looked at each other strangely.

            "That was kinda quick," Misty observed.

            Brock nodded.  "For a battle for a badge, that was sort of pathetic.  I mean, Ash did very well, but I expected more out of Mr. Vrenden."

            "Well, pathetic or not, Ash seems satisfied," Misty said.

            Ash hopped up and down ecstatically with Pikachu in his arms.  "Yes, I got a Johto Badge!  All right!"

            Mr. Vrenden walked up to Ash, and graciously extended his hand to Ash.  A smile swept across his face.  "Well done, Ash.  You've defeated me."        

            Ash gleamed.  "Yeah....uh, thanks!" he replied shyly, shaking Mr. Vrenden's hand.

            Misty and Brock joined them in the center of the dining room.  Ash couldn't wait to hold his first Johto Badge in his hands.  The feeling was exhilarating.  Sweat poured from his brow, both from the battle and his anticipation.  He bounced up and down excitedly.

            Misty laughed and grabbed Ash.  "Settle down, Ash!" 

            "Well, so I suppose you'd like something for your victory now, wouldn't ya?" Mr. Vrenden asked, crossing his arms almost proudly.

            "Yes sir!" Ash replied happily.  "I've been waiting a long time for a badge!"

            Mr. Vrenden chuckled softly and turned away from the three kids.  Ash, Misty, and Brock all threw confused glances at each other.  

            "Um, Mr. Vrenden?" Ash asked.  "I--I did win a badge, didn't I?"

            Mr. Vrenden returned his attention back to Ash.  "You most certainly did, my boy.  You're standing in it right now."

            Ash looked baffled at him.  "What?!" he asked, matched instantly by Misty and Brock's looks of bewilderment.

            Mr. Vrenden shot his arms up into the air. "Congratulations, Ash.  The Fireside's Warmth Hotel is now yours!"

            Ash's eyes flew wide open.  His knees started to shake.   Pikachu uttered a 'pika' out of shock.  Ash looked at his friends, whose mouths had nearly dropped to the floor.

            "Excuse me?" Ash asked, his voice quivering.  "Wha--what did you just say?"

            "You just won yourself a hotel," Mr. Vrenden said.  "I don't want to own it anymore.  I just don't have the energy.  So the other day I promised myself that I would give it to the first Pokémon trainer who defeated me."

            "But you should have told me that before the battle, Mr. Vrenden!" Ash yelled, sweatdropping.

            But before Mr. Vrenden replied, he had already run to get his coat on.  Ash, Misty, and Brock followed after him.  At the lobby of the hotel, Mr. Vrenden handed Ash an important looking document.  

            "I'll leave you here to sign this," he told him.  "When you do, the hotel is yours."

            "But Mr. Vrenden--" Ash began.           

            Mr. Vrenden held his hand out.  "If you excuse me, I'm on my way to the Orange Islands.  Adios."

            As the three shocked and confused kids stood gaping, Mr. Vrenden pulled three large suitcases out from behind the front counter.   He then looked into the eyes of Ash's, filled with fear and surprise, and nodded.  "Good luck."

            Mr. Vrenden then left the hotel.  Ash, Misty, and Brock watched him leave without saying a word, and even after the door was slammed behind him, they listened to his car speed away speechlessly.  Misty and Brock exchanged shocked looks while all Ash could do was look at the paper in his hands.  Suddenly, as though he realized the paper was carrying an infectious disease, he dropped it and let it fall slowly to the floor.

            "What just happened?" the poor boy asked, looking for comfort in his friends' eyes.

            Misty and Brock shrugged.

            "Why--why didn't he just give me a badge like I wanted?" Ash cried, panic and anger rising gradually in his voice.  "All I wanted was a badge!  He told me he was goin' to give me a badge!"

            "Pika pi," Pikachu said, trying to calm Ash down.  He tugged lightly on his pants.

            "Ash, calm down!" said Brock, grabbing Ash's shoulders.  "It's okay!"

            Ash settled down and his eyes swept over to Misty's.  A small shudder ran down his spine when he saw the face the Misty was giving him.  He had seen it sometimes on her, it was the face of "what did you think you were doing?".  Feeling funny from the look, he lowered his eyes to the ground.

            "I'm sorry, guys," he said softly, particularly towards Misty.  "I--I didn't expect this."      

            "It's okay, Ash," Brock assured him.  "Look, it's nothing to worry about tonight.  We can deal better with this I think if we get a good night's sleep."  He turned to Misty.  

            "Right?" he asked her, hoping for her support.

            "Yeah," she muttered.  She shuffled her foot along the carpet.  She didn't like the way Mr. Vrenden was acting about the battle from the beginning.  She saw it in his eyes, and now she was sorry that she hadn't said anything. Tried to stop Ash.  Convince him somehow to wait till the morning.  But she could never resist the spark in his eyes when he was about to battle, especially for a badge.  She liked to see him excited and happy.  

            Feeling as though now this could all be rested on her shoulders, she took a deep, comforting breath.  At least Ash was scared about this sudden turn of events.  She realized that she would have killed him if he was excited about owning the hotel, knocking some sense into him.  Now that she didn't have to do that fortunately, she gently picked the deed off the floor.  She scrutinized it over and over again.  Sure enough, it was no doubt _the_ hotel's ownership paper.

            "Let's not get this lost for now," she said, placing it behind the front counter.  "Whether you sign it or not."

            Ash didn't say anything.  He wished now that he hadn't won the battle.

            "Come on, let's go to bed," Brock suggested.  

            "Yeah, but where?" Misty asked.          

            Brock smiled.  "We're in a hotel!  What do mean 'where'?"

            Ash had walked around to the back of the front counter in the meantime.  He glanced down at the deed, exactly where Misty had put it minutes ago.  Shifting his eyes away from it, he noticed a rather large floor plan laminated and taped down on the counter. Interested, he began to scan over it. He didn't ever look at the other floors, but ran his finger over the rooms of the ground floor. Besides the dining room, there was another rather large room, which were labeled 'the caretaker's quarters'. Unemotionally, he turned back to Misty and Brock.

            "Hey guys, let's check out the caretaker's quarters," Ash said, walking down the main hallway.

            "Yeah, but where are they?" Misty called out after him.

            "I don't know, I'll find them," Ash answered, walking directly of course toward the dining room. He didn't know why he just didn't tell her that he had found the floor plan. Right now, he didn't feel like doing much of anything. "Trust me, they're somewhere."

            In no time, they did find the quarters, Ash leading the way almost precisely. Nothing of the battle emerged from any of the kids' lips, and they figured it was better that way. As the frigid winds blasted the windows, they were just relieved that for a change they weren't out in the freezing cold. 

            There was on large bedroom, along with a small one. Ash offered the large on to Misty. Misty refused however.

            "I'm not the owner," she said with a sly grin on her face.  "You get the big one."

            "Hey, I'm not the owner yet, either!" Ash exclaimed.  But when he looked into the bedroom and saw Pikachu asleep already on the bed, it seemed to end the argument. Brock seemed quite suitable on the couch, especially when there was only one bed left. 

            Nothing much happened afterwards, they were all too tired to worry about anything.  Misty fell asleep as soon as she hit the pillow, Togepi tucked into her arms.  Brock relished in one of things he missed while traveling: TV.  And Ash lay on his back, staring at the ceiling, recalling his evening.  It had begun so normal.  Without warning at some time, he eyes shut and he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

TO BE CONTINUED. . . 


	4. The Grand Tour

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon. 

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Last time, Ash battled the owner of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, Mr. Vrenden, for his first Johto Badge.  However, upon winning, Mr. Vrenden suddenly announces that Ash's prize is the hotel itself, and immediately leaves the hotel.

Summary:  Now that the Fireside's Warmth Hotel is Ash's, the three decide to spend some quality time in style.  But there's something's strange about this hotel that neither can put their finger on... 

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 4:

The Grand Tour

            When Ash woke up the next morning, he had no idea where he was.  All he knew was that he was in a comfortable bed, and that the warm, vibrating lump near his feet was Pikachu.  He lifted himself up slowly and looked across the room.  As soon as he saw the huge room before him with its gorgeous furniture and wood covered walls, he immediately realized that he had spent the night in the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  _His _Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  Or was it?

            "Misty? Brock?" he asked groggily, searching for his friends.  They were not in the room. Panicking, he swung his legs around the side of the bed.  He immediately felt the cold floor through his sock-covered feet, and it sent a small shock through his body.  He looked around at Pikachu, who had just been awoken.  

            He rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes, and realized just then that Misty and Brock had slept in separate rooms as well.  The caretaker's quarters, which were about the size of a large apartment, had two bedrooms.  Misty had taken the smaller, while Brock agreed to spend the night on the sofa bed in the spacious living room.  When Ash had last seen him, he was sprawled out on the bed, watching a late night comedy show.

            Ash was not used to waking up in such places.  He knew when he was in the Pokémon centers.  The feel of the stiff cots was quite familiar to him.  The feeling of the warm, king-sized bed in which he spent the night was a luxury he only enjoyed at home.

            "Pika pi?" Pikachu asked sleepily, his eyes half closed.

            Ash smiled and ran a hand over the Pokémon's soft head.  Pikachu purred softly as his trainer continued to stroke his head. 

            "Sleep well?" Ash asked.

            Pikachu rolled over.  "Pikachu," he answered quietly.

            Ash's attention was caught by someone stirring outside his door, a knocking coming upon it moments later. 

            "Ash?" The sound of Misty's voice came floating muffled through the door.

            Ash walked up and opened the door.  Misty was standing there in her blue bathrobe, and she smiled softly when Ash looked at her.  She was holding her arms around her, as if she were cold.

            "Hey Ash," she said, glancing down. 

            "G'morning," Ash replied, walking back towards his bag to grab his jacket.  He was a little chilly himself, and the only bathrobe he owned was currently hanging up in his closet back in Pallet Town.  He never thought he would need it on the road, and come to think of it, he never thought he'd be the proud new owner of a hotel resort, either.

            "You know Ash," Misty began as she strode into the room.  "I woke up this morning in the warmest bed I've felt in a long time.  And I was just so comfortable, and I looked around at the beautiful room that I happened to just be in.  That is, until I realized that I woke up in this freakin' hotel!"

            She bolted the last part out at Ash so hard that he jumped. Ash remembered from the night before the look of shock and terror that she shot at him when Mr. Vrenden announced that the hotel was now his.  She hated it from the beginning, and Ash knew that Misty was holding Ash accountable for the entire event.

            "It's not my fault!" Ash shouted, trying desperately once again to defend himself.  "I was expecting a badge, not the hotel!"

            Misty looked down at her feet again.  "I know that," she replied calmly.  "I just...I don't know.  This is not something I was prepared for."

            "No kidding," Ash said.  "And you think I am?"

            Misty rolled her eyes.  "I didn't mean it that way..."

            "I'm just a kid!" Ash belted out suddenly.  Misty glared at him.  

            Ash continued more peacefully.  "I hate to admit that, but kids don't run hotels."

            "Then why didn't you tell Mr. Vrenden that when he handed the _deeds_ over to you?"

            Ash shook his head.  "Excuse me if I was in shock.  I wanted a badge!"

            "Well, this is some impressive badge you got here, Ash!"

            Ash was ready to shoot a reply back at her when suddenly Brock came into the room.

            "What's the problem?" he asked, quite obvious that he had been awakened by Ash and Misty's arguing.

            "You know what the problem is, Brock!" Misty yelled.  "This place was nice to spend the night in, but there's no way in hell I'm gonna accept that we own this place!"

            Brock breathed in deeply, glancing back and forth at Ash and Misty.  "Look," he said.  "This is different, I know.  But, let's not worry about that right now.  We're here, we're warm.  Let's get a bite to eat, okay?"

            Ash smiled a bit, and turned his face toward Misty.  She looked at him, and his smile couldn't help but make her smile also.  The word 'food' immediately struck a cord within her.  "Come on," she said, making her way past Brock and into her room, where she collected Togepi.

            Ash waved his arm to motion Pikachu to follow, and he did.  Brock and Ash met Misty, and together they exited the caretaker's quarters.  Brock turned left, and Ash and Misty followed him.

            "Do you know where you're going?" Misty asked, her eyes narrowing.

            Brock sweatdropped.  "Uh, well...I'm using instinct," he replied.

            Misty shrugged.  Not a few moments later did they in fact find the large kitchen doors.  They were located off the empty dining room where Ash's Pokémon battle took place the night before.

            Brock marveled over the huge, luxurious kitchen.  With a smile, he began to walk through the spacious room, hardly believing at all that it was a kitchen. 

            "Would you look at this place!" Ash exclaimed.

            "I've never seen a kitchen so big in all my life!" added Misty.  Letting Togepi down on one of the ten-foot long counters, she walked over to what she believed were the pantries.  Sure enough they were, and she gasped in astonishment at what lay before her.  Ash and Brock joined her, and together, the three hungry trainers gaped at the amount of food the pantries contained.

            Packing the shelves where different assortments of food, ranging from condiments to breads, from snacks to cooking ingredients.  Brock leapt up to the next door, which was a bit difficult to open, on account that it was the freezer, which he discovered as soon as the frigid blast of air hit his face.

            "Whoa," he muttered, seeing every kind of meat known to man placed carefully on the shelves.  There were steaks of every kind, about three whole turkeys, numerous pot roasts and pork roasts, and whole chickens.   

            "We won't go hungry here, that's for sure," he said to Ash and Misty, motioning them over to look at the food for themselves.  "I can't wait to cook something up tonight!"

            "Well, I can't wait to eat it!" Ash answered with a large grin.  His stomach suddenly growled softly.  He laughed, then added, "I could sure go for something now."

            "Pikaaa...." Pikachu moaned in agreement. 

            Brock grinned happily.  "Well, you guys go set a place for us!  I'll have breakfast done before you know it!"

            Ash and Misty beamed, and immediately went to find plates and silverware.  About fifteen minutes later, they hungrily gobbled down Brock's delicious pancakes and breakfast sausages with fancy gourmet coffee he had found stashed in one of the pantries.  It filled their bellies satisfyingly, and they all settled back in their chairs when it was over.  

            "You know," Misty said soothingly, glancing over at the huge food supply through the closed doors.  "I wouldn't mind staying here for a little while."

            Ash nodded.  "No kidding.  I want to check this place out!  After all, it....it is mine."

            Misty's face fell.  "Oh, yeah," she said.

            Brock rested his head in his hands.  "You better call home first, Ash.  You know, so your mom knows where we are."

            Ash looked down at the floor.  "I don't know Brock.  I was kinda not gonna tell her yet."

            Brock frowned and shrugged.  "Why wouldn't you?  I mean, she's gonna worry.  Didn't you tell her we were going to be home soon?"

            "Yeah," Ash replied.  "But I don't think she's going to be thrilled with this news.  I just want to keep it quiet for a while.  We're early anyway, she's not expecting us till the weekend before Thanksgiving."

            Brock shrugged again.  "Your choice," was all he answered.  "But I understand.  If you tell her, she might want us to come home."

            "We have this place all to ourselves," Misty said.  "Not all kids get this opportunity."

            "You're right, Misty!" Ash agreed.  "Let's have fun for a couple days!"

            That seemed to be it.  Brock just smiled, and agreed also.  As he cleared away the dishes, Misty went into some sort of a dream state that neither Ash nor Brock could understand.  All they heard coming from her mouth was how much she was going to delight in the luxuries of the beautiful bathroom.  Ash himself didn't think it was a bad idea; he hadn't taken a shower in four weeks.  But that didn't come till later on.  Misty had been in the bathroom for two hours.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Around noon-time, Ash, Misty, and Brock decided to explore the hotel for the first time. They had remained on the first floor all morning, and neither of them had even seen the second floor yet. Ash didn't even know how many floors his hotel had.  Pikachu had been upstairs earlier to sniff around the place.  Ash hadn't noticed his return, he only found him asleep on his bed.

            When Brock had announced that they tour the Fireside's Warmth, Ash motioned to Pikachu to join them, which he did.

            The three made their way up the large, winding main staircase first, which led to a magnificent landing on the second floor.  It looked almost like a second lobby, containing more couches and tables and reading lamps; just a place to plop down at night.  Ash did just that.

            "Just checking out MY chairs," he said with a sly grin, adding extra emphasis on the 'my.'           

            Misty just groaned and shook her head.  Togepi cried softly in her arms, and she set him down on the floor.  The little Pokémon followed attentively at her feet.

            "This place is just gorgeous," she cried, taking in the sights of the glamorously decorated hallways.  "Just imagine what the rooms must look like!"

            Ash was smiling the whole time.  "And it's all mine!"

            All the hallways and carpeting were the same throughout the hotel.  They discovered soon afterward that the hotel had only three floors, but each floor was like a gigantic maze of corridors and halls, housing hundreds of guest rooms.  Ash suspected that they were all the same, though he did not know yet what any looked like.

            Brock was fascinated also.   The hotel was remarkably clean which he had observed.  Ash and Misty were walking in front of him throughout their trip through the hotel, and he lagged slowly but not completely separated from them.  He loved the third floor best; it was more spacious, and the paintings that hung on the wall were beautiful.  Ash and Misty were now chatting quietly in front of him, talking about the situation the night before and the upcoming holidays.  Misty announced that she wanted to decorate the place for the holidays.

            He smiled at this thought, but suddenly his heart took a leap.  He shortened his strides, which caused him to go faster, but not as smooth.  He fixed his head straight before him, and he held his breath with a rise of panic welling up within him.   Someone was behind him.  He felt it.  Finally on a whim, he spun around to find nothing behind him.  He uttered a small gasp as he did this, causing Ash and Misty to spin around as well.

            There was nothing -- nothing at all behind him.  Brock was breathing heavily now, his heart pounding at an incredible rate.

            "What's the matter?"  Ash's voice made Brock shudder slightly.

            Brock turned to Ash with a disorientated face.  Both Ash and Misty frowned, and shrugged waiting for an explanation.  He just looked behind him again.

            "Uh, nothing," he said, smiling feebly.  "I-- I just thought I heard something behind me, that's all."  He ran his hand through his hair nervously.

            Misty laughed insultingly.  "Are you crazy?" she asked.  "Please don't leave us now, Brock!"

            "You thought someone was behind us?" Ash asked with a laugh.  

            Brock started to laugh too, but the weird sensation was still affecting him.  "Well, I don't know.  But I felt something creepy."

            "It's just your imagination," Misty assured, grabbing Brock's hand.  "You're spooking yourself."

            "I guess you're right," Brock agreed, feeling foolish of himself.  "Still....it did seem pretty funky.  I mean, look at how I'm shaking!"

            Ash picked Pikachu up into his arms.  "Old places like this do that to you."

            They began to make their way back down the stairs.  Brock felt better now, but he could not shake the feeling that he had just experienced moments before.  It had felt so real, so definite.  He had felt a presence behind him, and he could have sworn if it weren't for Ash and Misty that somebody had been walking behind him.  It was so obvious.  This made a chill run down his spine.  He huddled closer to Ash and Misty as they made their descent down the main staircase.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .


	5. The Sleeping Bet

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.  All those people in the end credits of the show do.

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Summary: After a long day of exploring the hotel for the first time, Ash, Misty, and Brock decide to make a bet about the sleeping arrangements...who can last the longest alone?

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 5:

The Sleeping Bet

            After exploring the three spectacular floors of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, Ash pointed them towards the eastern wing, where none of them had even thought of going yet.  Brock had seen a large hallway leading that way, and was curious about where it lead.

            "Why is it getting so warm in this hallway?" Ash complained as the air around them became dense and humid.

            Misty grinned.  "There's a pool nearby," she said simply.

            "A pool?!" Ash cried, a smile lighting up his face immediately.  "Awesome!"

            "I always know when a pool's around," Misty continued proudly.

            But Ash was not listening to her after that.  He sprinted towards the end of the hallway with his Pikachu following closely at his heels.  He crashed into the huge doors at the end.  Misty and Brock by now had jogged swiftly after him to catch up.

            The Fireside's Warmth pool was amazing. It was a crystal clear blue, a blue that drew Misty's attention at once.  It was shaped like a kidney, one section shallow then gradually deepening towards the other end.  

            "It's gorgeous!" Misty practically screamed, her eyes brightened.  

            Brock and Ash were also excited.  Neither of them could wait to try it out eventually, maybe even that night.

            All of a sudden, Misty handed Brock Togepi, then bolted off back down the hallway.  Ash and Brock looked stangely at each other.

            "Where you goin'?  What's wrong?" Brock called to her.

            "Don't worry!" Misty called back, her voice distant from down the hallway.  "I'll be right back!"

            Sure enough, a few minutes later, she returned, her Pokéballs piled in her hands.  She called out each of her Pokémon, and they all jumped into the pool instantly.  

            "Hey, who said you could use MY pool to house your stinking Pokémon?!" Ash yelled, as Misty watched them swimming around happily.  Even Psyduck stumbled around the side of the pool before jumping in himself.

            Misty turned back to him with an angry, threatening glare in her eyes.  "I did!" she shot back at him so hard that it made Ash flinch.  She smiled, and continued.  "Besides, they haven't been in water for as long as I can remember."

            Ash felt for her Pokémon deep down, so he stopped the argument before it even started.   He watched the Pokémon floating around and sighed heavily.

            "I need some fresh air," Brock announced, moving away from the pool.  "Let's go check out the outside of this place."

            "We already saw the outside, Brock," Ash replied.  "It looks like a pig sty."

            Misty laughed, and Brock smiled.  "Well, that was the front.  Let's go to the back."

            Ash, Misty, and Brock left Misty's Pokémon to relax a while out of their Pokéballs, and headed towards the back doors of the hotel, located off the lounge near the dining room.   Since it was the late fall, the ground was practically frozen and covered with decaying leaves. It suprisingly wasn't cold out, only a small, cold wind blew across the yard.  A large box of some sort caught Ash's attention, and he asked the two what it could be.  Approaching the box, they noticed that it was made of hard cement, with tall, metal wickets sticking up all over the place.

            "Hey, cool!  It's a croquet court!" Ash exclaimed, answering his own question.  He recognized it because he had played it a couple times when he was young.

            "Actually, it's a roque court," Brock corrected, stepping into the box.

            "Roque?" Misty asked.  She had heard of croquet naturally, but that was a new one to her.

            "Yeah," Brock replied.  "But you're right, Ash. It is sort of like croquet.  In fact, croquet is a cousin of this game."

            Ash nodded, and ran his eyes around the court.  "Looks like croquet to me."

            "But where are the mallets and balls?" Misty asked, searching around the area.

            Brock noticed a small shed near the court, and he strode over to it.  He began to pull at the door, but it didn't budge.  Luckily, he saw that it could not be locked because the section that was supposed to hold a padlock did not contain one.  The door is obviously frozen, he thought, and yanked hard at it.  It finally opened, throwing Brock back on his butt.

            "Smooth, Brock," Misty teased.

            "Pika pika!" Pikachu laughed, also.

            Brock made a small, crooked smile, and got up.  "Ah, here we go!  Here're the mallets and balls!"

            At that, he grabbed into the shed.  Ash and Misty leaned over to look in, but jumped back with a start when suddenly Brock whipped out a huge mallet, a size neither of the younger trainers had ever seen before.

            "Ah, Brock!  Watch where you're swinging that thing!" Misty shouted, clutching the terrified Togepi close to her chest.

            "See you guys," Brock informed, holding the huge mallet in front of him.  "The equipment is just like croquet, only it's twice as big!"

            "I'd say!" Ash put in, eyeing the mallet up and down.  He reached up and grabbed it out of Brock's hand, but the weight of it caused Ash to drop it soon afterward...right on Brock's foot.

            "YEEEOOWWTCH!" he cried, grabbing his foot and jumping up and down.  Misty sweatdropped and laughed quietly under her breath.

            "Oh, Ash...." she muttered.

            "S-sorry, Brock," apologized Ash, and Brock immediately seized the mallet back off the ground.  

            "Ash, these are heavy!  Be careful with them!" Brock scolded.  

            Ash and Misty found their own ways into the shed, and pulled out their own mallets.  Misty held the heavy club in her hand with no problem, and now that Ash had a better grip on the mallet, he held it better too.

            "Hey, let's play some croquet!" suggested Ash excitedly, as he grabbed what appeared to be a mammoth croquet ball.  All the mallets and balls were the same except for a single strip of color circling them.  They were all made of old, weathered wood, but they were still in terrific condition.

            "You're on!" Misty said, setting Togepi down on the ground.  "Come on, Brock!"

            Brock shook his head.  "Nah, think I'll pass for now.  I'll teach you guys how to play roque later, okay?"

            Ash and Misty were disappointed, but Brock told them that he wanted to check out the hotel more.  Ash shrugged and told him to have fun, and Brock smiled as he walked off.

            "Wait!" Misty called back to him.  "Here, take Togepi inside for me.  Let him sleep."      

            "Sure," Brock said, taking the Pokémon into his arms.

            "Togi! Togi!" Togepi cried out to Misty.

            "Aw, don't worry, Togepi!  I'll be inside soon!" Misty promised and waved softly to him.

            As Brock strolled back towards the hotel with Togepi snuggled warmly in his arms, Ash and Misty began to hit the oversized balls around, clunking them into the sides of the court, through the wickets a few times, and even over Ash's foot once.  They never really played a real game, but they laughed and enjoyed themselves for over a half an hour.  Even Pikachu was in his glory chasing the balls around.

            A few hundred feet away, Team Rocket watched the three play their disorganized game through their high-tech binoculars.

            "Ohhh, croquet!" James cried delightedly.  "I remember when I used to play that game.  It was always on those late, summer afternoons on my parents' sweeping green lawn!"

            "Meowth, and look at those huge balls!" Meowth said, marveling over the tempting round objects rolling around the court.

            Jessie was confused with the sight going on before her.  For as long as they had seen the twerps go into the hotel till now, they did not see anyone else present there.  It was almost too weird to figure out.  Jessie didn't know if in fact they were alone in the hotel.  Her head was spinning from spending too much time in the cold, as well, and she wasn't quite sure if she was disorientated enough to realize if other people were in the hotel.

            "So, should we attack?" James asked, breaking Jessie's train of thought.

            "Huh?" Jessie asked, but shook her head.  "Uh, no--no, not yet," she answered, lifting the binoculars to her face again.

            "I would think now's the perfect time," Meowth observed.  "They don't have that big twerp with them, and I don't think they'd be suspectful of us dropping by!"

            James nodded his head in agreement.  But Jessie looked at the kids, and then at the hotel.

            "Well, you do have a point," Jessie replied.  "But I want to find something out first before we try out the plan."

            James' face lit up.  "You mean you have one?!"

            Jessie couldn't help but smile.  "I might," she said slyly.  "But first I need you to do something for me."     

            James and Meowth looked at Jessie weirdly.  "What, Jess?" asked James.

            "As soon as those twerps head back to the hotel," she began, getting up out of her squatting position, "I want you to go over there and see if you can see anybody else with them inside."

            "You mean you think they're alone in there?" Meowth asked.  

            Jessie shook her head.  "I don't know."

            The three looked on as Ash and Misty threw the mallets and the balls back into the shed.  Misty bundled her coat up more around her, and both were chatting away though Team Rocket couldn't hear what it was.  They had huge smiles on their faces, so they were obviously happy.

            James volunteered to sneak up to the ground floor windows of the hotel.  There were many of them, and he wished that Jessie and Meowth could have helped out.  But they refused, saying that they needed to make a fire or something like that.  So James went out on his own, and he had to admit that he was a little frightened.  The huge hotel loomed before him, and its appearance was not exactly pleasing to James' eyes.  He felt at times that it was watching him, or worse yet, someone inside was doing the watching.  The last thing he wanted to do was get caught, and ruin their plans...for now.  He wanted to impress his teammates, and screwing up was always a tremendous fear to him.

            It did not take long however to spot the twerps.  They were seated in the lounge.  Ash had his feet up on the coffee table, and Misty was curled up in a chair.  James observed them attentively as Brock brought in their dinner, which they set on the coffee table.  They ate like animals, taking the food in with huge gulps.  James licked his lips.  He could have gone for some food at that time. 

            But no one was with them.  James nodded to himself, and stayed a few minutes longer to make sure nobody joined them.  When no one did, James hopped off the log pile that had been supporting him, and rushed back to their hideout.

            Jessie and Meowth stood as he approached.  He smiled and threw his arms up.  "I don't know what the story is," he told them, "but they're sure as hell alone in there."

            Jessie smiled.  She knew it.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Later that night, after Brock's delicious fried chicken and rice had been devoured, the three sat lazily in front of the same fireplace they had done the night before.  Pikachu was nestled on Ash's lap as Ash scratched the Pokémon's head.  Misty had her eyes closed.  Togepi had been on her bed asleep for most of the evening.  Brock sat closest to the fire, occasionally poking at it.

            "It's been a long day," Misty said with a long sigh.

            "Yeah, but fun," Ash added.

            Suddenly the grandfather clock in the far corner began to chime, announcing nine o'clock.  Ash could feel himself starting to fall asleep, but he didn't know if he wanted to turn in for the night.  

            Brock thought differently.  "I think I'm going to go to bed," he said as he started to stretch.  

            "Yeah, me too," Misty said.  

            Ash didn't say anything, but rested his head back on the couch.

            "You know what?" Misty asked, looking at Ash and Brock with an exhausted face on.

            "What?" Brock asked back.

            "I think I want this evening to myself," Misty continued. 

            Ash shrugged.  "Fine," he said, starting to get up himself.

            "No, no, no," Misty smiled, shaking her head. "I mean in a separate room.  I haven't had much privacy for the past, well, couple _years_. So, tonight, I'm gonna be all by myself!"

            Ash's eyes were lowered. "And exactly _where_ were you planning on spending this night by yourself?"

            Misty pointed her finger up to the ceiling.  Her eyes lit up suddenly.  "In the honeymoon suite, of course!" she answered dreamingly.  "I've always wanted to sleep in a beautiful hotel suite!"

            "I don't see anything wrong with the caretaker's quarters," said Ash, trying his best to break her "disgustingly romantic" moment.

            Misty turned red with anger.  "Yeah, well I do!  And I'm gonna spend the night in that hotel suite whether you like it or not, Mr. Hotel Owner!"

            Brock came between the two of them, grinning nervously and sweatdropping.  "Guys, come on.  It's a nice evening.  You know, Ash, I think Misty's right.  We don't have to be cooped up in the caretaker's quarters."

            "Huh?" Ash asked.

            Brock was relieved.  He had prevented Ash and Misty from killing each other once again.  "We own this hotel! We can go wherever we want!"

            Ash smiled.  "Hey, you're right! I want to spend the night in a fancy suite also!"

            Misty smirked.  "Well, you ain't getting MY honeymoon suite!"

            "Grrr...I don't want your stupid room!" Ash shot back.

            Brock saved the situation once again. "I got an idea!  Why don't we all spend the night in different rooms?  Ooh, ooh, better yet!  Different floors!  It'll be fun.  We can see who can last the night alone!"

            "Hah," Ash laughed.  "Piece of cake.  I'm not afraid of anything!"

            Misty sweatdropped.  This was going to be an interesting night.

            "Sleeping in a huge hotel like this alone isn't easy," Brock explained, hoping Ash and Misty agreed with that.  "Well, not for me, but..."

            "Yeah, right," Misty murmured.

            "Well, it sounds like fun," Ash proclaimed. "What d'ya say Pikachu?  Thing we can make it all alone tonight?"

            "Pi pikachu!" Pikachu cried, giving Ash the victory sign.

            "Me and Pikachu are in!" Ash announced.  He turned to Misty.  "You too?"

            "Of course," Misty said a little annoyed.  "If it weren't for me, we wouldn't be doing this, nimrod."

            Ash scratched his head.  "Oh, right."

            As soon as the bet was made between the three, Misty immediately bolted behind the front desk, and carefully lifted the honeymoon suite's key off its hook.  

            "Where you guys sleeping?" she asked, twirling the key ring around her finger.

            Ash and Brock looked at each other.  They weren't very familiar with the rooms the hotel had to offer.  Misty was quite apathetic.  She sighed, and turned to Ash.

            "You _do_ know there's an owner's apartment here, don't you?" she asked.

            "There is?" Ash asked surprised.

            Misty groaned, and threw him the key to the room.  "Well, I got second floor and Ash has first floor, so that means third floor for you, Brock."

            "Yes!" Brock cried, nearly making Ash jump out of his skin.  "I claim Presidential Suite!  I just remembered seeing the doorway to that room earlier today!"

            Misty searched around for the key, and when she finally found it, she tossed to Brock.

            "All right," Brock said.  "See you guys tomorrow, if you can make it through the night!"  At that, he broke out into evil sounding laughter.

            "Very funny, Brock," Misty said sarcastically.

            After grabbing their bags from the caretaker's quarters, the three made their way to their respective rooms.  The rooms were just as beautiful and spectacular as they had imagined, each containing a gorgeous bathroom.  Ash's room had its own kitchen-type room as well, and he discovered some food in it left by Mr. Vrenden.  None of it looked appealing though, so he left it alone.  He was still full from Brock's dinner. Misty was in her glory in the honeymoon suite.  It was by far the most beautiful room she had seen yet, and she and Togepi settled in comfortably for the night.  As soon as Brock entered the Presidential Suite, he was totally astonished by how impressive it was. Since it was designed for the rich and famous, all the creature comforts were there...whirlpool bathtub, fancy king-sized bed, and an honor bar.  With a look a sheer happiness displayed across his face, he let himself fall onto the bed, and soon he drifted off into sleep.

            For the first time that day, the Fireside's Warmth Hotel was silent.  And although not everyone was asleep just yet, tranquillity dominated the air. Everything was still, and Ash, Misty, and Brock relaxed deeply, feeling secure and warm.  Nothing was going to bother their nights, or at least so they thought.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .


	6. Things That Go Bump in the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.  I do not own "The Shining," either.  Stephen Kind does.  Sorry for making a mockery of the greatest book ever written, and the greatest mini-series ever filmed.  You rule, Steven Weber!

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Summary:  The second night in the Fireside's Warmth Hotel does not prove to be a pleasant one for Ash, Misty, and Brock.  

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 6:

Things That Go Bump in the Night

            As the clock downstairs struck midnight, Ash's eyes flew open. For some strange reason he could not sleep.  He tried to relax and concentrate on nothing, but despite his sleepiness, he could not drift off into dreamland.  He was comfortable and all, and he had Pikachu snoring away peacefully beside him.  Ash sat up in bed, and Pikachu slowly opened one eye.

            "Pika pi?" Pikachu asked, looking sleepily at Ash.

            Ash smiled.  "I'm okay, Pikachu.  I can't sleep, that's all."

            "Kachu, pika pikachu," Pikachu said silently, closing his eyes once again. In no time he was asleep again.  Ash could not blame him.  He couldn't understand why he couldn't sleep, though.  He was not frightened at all about being alone on the second floor in a secluded area of the hotel, but he felt weird.  Closing his eyes, he laid his head back down on the pillow, and thought about the fun he had had playing croquet with Misty that afternoon.  Maybe that would let his mind rest.

            Misty had not attempted to fall asleep just yet.  She had been sitting up in bed quietly reading a novel that she had stored in her bag since day one. She never got a chance to read it when she was on the road.  It was hard to see the pages by the fire, and when they had occasionally spent the night in a Pokémon Center, she had been too tired to even think of it.  Togepi slept deeply in her arms, and when she looked at her nightstand clock to notice it was midnight, she decide to turn in.  She didn't want to sleep too much into the morning, and maybe missing out of one of Brock's delicious breakfasts.  She closed the book and carefully lifted Togepi onto the opposite side of the bed.  Pulling the covers over her, she shut the light off and closed her eyes.

            She did not have her eyes closed for half a minute before they flew open again to the sound of a voice.  As silent and muffled as it was, Misty heard it perfectly.  She sat up in bed and switched on the light immediately.  All fell silent for about a moment before she heard it start up again.  Her heart was pounded slightly.  She could not make out what the voice was saying, but she could tell that that was what it was.  Someone was talking, very quietly and very calmly.  It would say a few muffled words, pause, then start up again.

            Ash. That's all she could think off.  Sweating incredibly, she sighed out of annoyance.

            "Ash Ketchum!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.  "Stop trying to scare me!  It's not funny!"

            She listened, waiting to hear him either apology or burst out laughing.  She wouldn't have been surprised if Brock joined in along with him laughing too.  But instead, there was complete silence again.

            "Jerk," Misty muttered, assuming Ash had run away from the room about to howl with laughter.  She shut off her light again, and fell suddenly into a deep sleep.

            Misty didn't know how long she slept.  It seemed like almost a minute, but when the sound of squeaky wheels floated past her door and her eyelids flew open in panic, she discovered that she had in fact slept for two hours.

            "What the hell?" she said in a garbled tone, although she was fully wide-awake.  She sat up in bed, and listened carefully.  There was absolute quiet yet again.  Misty was confused.   She could have sworn that she had heard a cart of some sort going by her room.  After breathing deeply and in silence for about five minutes, Misty concluded that she must have been dreaming.

            She glanced over at Togepi.  Her waking up did not wake him up.  She exhaled loudly, and ruffled her sheets.  She slid down deep into them, feeling the warm spots where her legs had been.  The night alone was not doing good things for her, that was for sure.  Her heart finally calmed down, but her head was beginning to ache a bit.  Nothing a good night's sleep wouldn't cure. But then she heard it again.

            It was clearly the sound of a cart rolling down the hallway.  It was low at first, and by the time it sped past her door noisily, she had shot out of bed.  Anger and terror rose up in her simultaneously.

            "Ash, I swear to God! I'm going to kill you!" she screamed as loud as she could.  "This isn't funny!  It's two am!"

            Despite her courage, or so it seemed (if it were Ash it wouldn't have amounted to anything), tears began to well up in her eyes.  Her easygoing heartbeat was now disrupted again, and she wrapped her arms around her. The cold air had hit her warm body with tremendous force.  She figured that the thermostat must have gone down during the night.  Misty couldn't imagine it being so cold in her magnificently heated room.  

            "Idiot," she said to herself.  Although she realized it couldn't be anything else other than Ash or perhaps Brock, she still felt a mysterious nervousness building up within her.  "Probably wheeling around in the halls with a stupid laundry cart.  Well, the jokes on him--he lost the bet anyway.  Nice try to cover it up, buddy-boy."

            She laughed restlessly, and when she heard nothing else going on, she decided to return to her bed.  Togepi was still in a deep sleep.  The commotion hadn't woken him.  Thank God for small favors.

            Back in her bed again and the light that was killing her eyes moments ago now off, she promised herself that she would finally rest this time.  The idiot Ash probably came to his senses by now, and went back to his room.  She couldn't wait to wring his neck the next morning.  

            Misty lay peacefully, listening to her soft breathing.  Albeit she was no doubt tired, concentrating on her breathing always helped her calm down and drift off into slumber.  It was almost like meditating.  Pretty soon, that's all she did hear, and it comforted her.  In and out, in and out.  Shortly, she was in that wonderful state between sleep and consciousness, and her whole body melted into the bed....

            "Misty."

            She rolled around, still half asleep.  "Hmmmm? What?"

            "Misty.....Misty."

            "Hmmmm," Misty continued, until fear grabbed her instantly.  Her heart made a twisting leap inside her body.  She clutched her pillow in fright and squeezed her eyes shut.

            "Misty......Misty.....Misty....."

            The whispers were so faint, yet so real.

            "Oh, my God, help me..." Misty thought, her heart pounding like a steel drum.  "Oh, God, what's happening?!"

            This was certainly not Ash this time.  Or Brock.  But she was not alone in this room.  She felt a  definite presence within the room, the kind of feeling you get when you know someone's leaning over you, watching you with a sly grin.  She refused to open her eyes because she did not want to see anything.

            "I must be dreaming," she thought, along with perhaps thousands of other thoughts running through her mind at once.

            The whispers were still just that, whispers.  But they had grown louder.  They were multiple, and if Misty didn't know it, she could have assured that there were tens of numbers of people in the room, in all corners, in all nooks and crannies and in every crack in every wall, under her bed, on the ceiling, right behind her bedstand.  And they all wanted her attention.  They all were trying to coax her on, to open her eyes....just for a second.... come on, Misty, don't you want to see us?

            "Misty......Misty........Misty.........Misty......"

            They continued and drudged on and on, some of the whispers overlapping onto one another.  Misty couldn't breath or move.  She was frozen in fear, a terrible panic that had paralyzed her body.

            How she managed to jump up and switch on her light in two rapid clicks was beyond her.  But it worked.  As though whoever or whatever it was beckoning to her were hit by gunshot, the whispers ceased, leaving only a frightened young girl and her baby egg Pokémon in the haunting silence of the night.

            Her body finally returned to her, tears began to spill out of her eyes.  She grasped Togepi, which awakened him immediately, and she began to sob.  She rocked back and forth, holding the crying Pokémon in her arms.

            "Oh, quiet Togepi.  Shhhhh...." she said, trying to soothe him as best she could.  She knew she hadn't been dreaming.  She couldn't have.  It was too real, too vivid.  She was awake, there was no doubt about that.  But she couldn't have heard what she did, could she?

            Misty sat up for about three hours after that, never turning out the light beside her bed, her trusty weapon.  Togepi finally feel asleep again, but Misty held on tightly to him, and kept her wits about her.  Finally, towards the break of dawn, her eyes shut and she slept till morning.

____________________________________________________________________________________

            At about the same time Misty had heard the ghostly laundry cart shoot past her room, Ash finally fell asleep.  He had lain awake in bed since he had tucked himself in at ten o'clock, thinking about so many things.   He twisted and turned many times, had got up once to use the bathroom, and even drank a glass of cold milk from Mr. Vrenden's private refrigerator.  He didn't care that the milk had expired three days before.  It felt good, coated his stomach, and relaxed him.

            He had been dying to go to Misty or Brock's room to crash for the night.  He had to finally admit to himself that he did not like this idea of sleeping alone.  He was never this alone at night.  He liked to know that someone was sleeping no further than one room away from him, and he had never in his life experienced otherwise.  Ash had not even slept alone once since he began his Pokémon journey, but now he wish he had.  It might have prepared him for this night.

            As much as he wanted it, he never left his room.  He wanted to prove to Misty and Brock that he could make it.  That he wasn't a baby.  Misty especially, for she would find some way of holding it against him for the rest of his life.  Using it at the most inappropriate times to humiliate him.  Well, it wasn't going to happen.  Not on his life.

            Ash didn't know the time that he actually fell asleep or was even beginning to.  He felt sleep overpowering him, and he let it take over his body.  Pikachu had been asleep ever since his head hit his pillow.  Ash envied him.  He was so tired that he couldn't tolerate it.  And even after he finally slept, his restlessness didn't end.

            Dreams plagued his mind the whole night.  But the only one that he would remember come morning was quite a peculiar one.  He did not know the meaning of it, and he believed that all dreams had meaning some way or another.

            It was dark and overcast, and he was in the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  In the Presidential Suite.  Ash had never seen the suite nor been in it, but he knew that that was where he was in the dream.  The entire room was bright crimson red, and Ash was suddenly drawn to the window.

            As he peered out the dirty windows, he found himself looking down on the roque court.  He squinted with all his might.  There was someone down there playing on his roque court.  He leaned further against the window, trying desperately to make out who it was.  The strange individual knocked the roque ball with all his strength, then froze, and looked up towards Ash.  It was Gary.  He glared at Ash, then smiled.  The smile was not a pleasant one, though.  It made Ash shrink back in fear.  The dream ended suddenly there, and blended into another one, which was vague to Ash. 

            Two floors above him, Brock was having a night full of dreams as well.  He had had no problem getting to bed that evening.  Brock had done a lot of work that day, between cooking the meals and walking over two miles around the hotel.  He was a very tired person, anyway.  Sometimes being up all day doing nothing even tired him.  But most of the time, on the road traveling from town to town, he had an excuse to be exhausted.  Brock was lost in a different world now.  When he slept, he always dreamt.  They were always a mix of good dreams and nightmares, but his dreams at the hotel were somewhat in between.  

            Brock dreamt of walking through the long corridors of the hotel, but the halls were different then they were.  The walls were a deep crimson red, the same color the wallpaper was in the Presidential Suite of Ash's dream.  The carpet, which was really a dark green with white lining, was now blue and black, swirling around in zany circles.  As he paced down the hallways, he realized he didn't know where he was going.  He wasn't sure whether or not he was looking for the staircase or a particular room, but he kept walking anyway.  Suddenly, the door a little ways down the hallway opened, and popped the face of his little 6-year-old sister, Suzy.  She smiled joyfully at him and waved, and he smiled and waved back.  Pretty soon, though, she pulled her head into the room and the door closed.  Brock walked on.   Before long, two doors opened, and two other of his siblings popped their heads out.  They waved, laughed, then withdrew themselves back into the rooms.  This continued throughout the dream, only now they were speaking to him.

            "Come home, Brock!" they shouted, whether it were one of them or a bunch of them at once. "Come home!  We miss you!"

            Brock never replied to them, he only smiled.  He wanted to talk to them, to tell them that he missed them too and that he loved them, and a couple times he even reached out to touch them.   He never did, but came so close to them many times.  Soon his smile faded, and he became frightened.  Why couldn't he touch them or talk to them?  It seemed as though they were slowly fading away from him, out of his reach.  At first, their expressions displayed happiness and silliness, but now they were become faces of panic and fear, and Brock noticed it immediately.  He wanted to know what was wrong so that he could help them. 

            Finally, it was just little Suzy again.  Brock stopped this time.  She was not popping her head out of a room this time, rather, she was standing at the end of the hallway near the Presidential Suite.  Tears were rolling down her cheeks, and she held out her hand to Brock.  Brock grabbed it instantly and held it tight.  Looking down into the beautiful brown eyes of his little sister, she spoke to him gravely: "Brock, come home!  You need to!"

            At that she vanished, and Brock's dream ended.  He shot up in bed.  Glancing at the clock quickly, he discovered it was nine am.  He rubbed his eyes, and lay back down in bed.  Staring at the ceiling, he thought of the dream.  He had never dreamt anything like that before.  

            "Maybe they really need me," Brock thought worriedly.  Still pondering the thought, he got out of bed to see if Ash or Misty were awake.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Ash, Misty, and Brock were not the only ones having a difficult night.

            As James and Meowth slept bundled up in their heavy-duty sleeping bags, Jessie sat up clutching her sleeping bag around her.  She was shivering uncontrollably.  She could no longer feel the tip of her nose or ears, even though she had a shirt wrapped around her face.  Jessie pushed her hands deeper into the warmest part of her sleeping bag--under her legs.  She wished that she could have slept but the cold was too much for her.

            Her eyes were glued to the hotel.  It was magnificent against the bright, starlit sky.  But sometime during the night, it became weird.  Lights began to turn on and off in different rooms.  On different floors and everything.   And not in rooms right next to each other, but all over the places.  Jessie stared at this in awe, all too curious.

            "Their timers must be screwed up," Jessie laughed to herself, knowing that those little twerps couldn't be doing that.  Unless they could race at the speed of light!

            Finally, she snuggled up close to James.  It wasn't much warmer, but she felt more protected. She closed her eyes, and finally slept.

TO BE CONTINUED . . .


	7. The Morning After

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon.  I don't own "The Shining" either.  Both these wonderful things belong to their respectful owners.

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV show.

Last time, Misty had the most horrific night of her life in the honeymoon suite.  But was it Ash, or something else?

Summary:  Something's not right about the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, and Ash, Misty, and Brock are not sure if they want to find out what it is.

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 7:

The Morning After

            Ash jumped back in shock at the anger-stricken face Misty shot at him when the two met each other for the first time the next morning.  She was grinding her teeth, and her eyes tore into him like daggers.  She held Togepi in her arms, and Ash noticed that the Pokémon was a bit upset.

            "What's your problem?" Ash asked her, concerned.

            "You little creep!" she shouted at him, stepping a few strides over to him.  He backed up immediately.  

            "What are you talking about?" Ash asked.  He was worried now.  "What did I do this time?"

            Misty glared at him.  "YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID!"

            They were standing in the front lobby.  Bright sunlight gleamed through the windows, and the heater had just begun to pump warm, circulating heat throughout the hotel.

            Ash shrugged, his eyes widening.  "Are you referring to me leaving the toilet paper roll empty in the bathroom?"  he asked.  "Because if it is, I swear I don't know where the extra toilet paper is!"  He cowered, waiting for her to take a swing at him.  Due to experience, he was always prepared.

            "I wasn't talking about that, no!" Misty replied, her face turning a beet red.   "Stop fooling around!  What the hell were you doing outside my room last night?!"

            Ash threw her a confused look.  "I wasn't anywhere near your room last night," he said simply.

            She growled and shoved him as hard as she could.  He fell back a couple feet, but caught his balance before he went down.  "What do you MEAN YOU WEREN'T OUTSIDE MY ROOM last night?!  I heard you snooping around out there!  Don't lie to me!  It wasn't funny.  You scared me!"

            Ash looked down at Pikachu, who looked back up at him in a twisted face.  "I meant that I WASN'T outside your room last night," he shot back rudely.  "I was in my room all last night.  Ask Pikachu."

            "Kachu!" Pikachu agreed, pointing at Ash.

            "You're lying!" Misty yelled, making Ash cringe. He was slowly becoming angry.  If she wasn't going to accept the truth, he would walk away from her, and who cared what she thought?  He certainly didn't.

            "You're just trying to hide it!" Misty continued.

            "Hide WHAT? What the hell are you talking about?"

            "You lost the bet!" Misty shouted.  "You weren't suppose to leave your room last night and now you're playing dumb to hide it!"

            "I was in my room ALL NIGHT," Ash confirmed again.  

            He was astonished, however, when he saw Misty's eyes cloud up with tears.  "Please, Ash, please!" she said, now begging.  "Please...if it wasn't you.....but no! It must have been you--because..."

            "It could have been Brock," Ash said matter-of-factly.

            Misty fell silent.  She rubbed her forehead as if she had a headache. Ash figured she probably just gave herself one.  As much as he was mad for her accusing him of something that he didn't do, he couldn't help but feel concerned with the way she was acting.  She was scared and disoriented, and Ash wanted to know what was wrong.

            "Come on," Ash said gently.  "Let's go get something to drink."

            Starting off to the kitchen, they stopped when they heard Brock hopping swiftly down the stairs.  He was wrapped in one of the hotel's clean dark green bathrobes.  FWH was embroidered on the front of it.  Ash wished that he had looked inside his closet, for now he was wearing simply his fall coat.  It kept him warm enough, but he felt like he was outside all the time.

            "Hey, Brock," Ash welcomed him happily.  "How was your night?"

            Brock smiled warmly.  "It was awesome.  That bed is sooo comfortable."

            "Yeah, for the amount of time you were actually IN it," Misty said in a snide remark.

            Brock looked at her strangely.  "What does that mean?" 

            Misty just sighed, and turned away.  Brock turned to Ash and shrugged, giving him a "what did I do?" expression.

            "Why were you scaring Misty last night?" Ash asked, smiling slightly.

            Misty caught his little smirk.  "Oh, you think this is a big joke?!" she roared. 

            Brock grabbed her shoulders.  "Misty, calm down!" he ordered.  "What's the matter with you?  If you think I was bothering you last night, you're wrong. I went to sleep as soon as I got to my room."

            Misty looked into Brock's sincere eyes.  For some reason, she could always believe Brock.  And now as she stared into his eyes, she could tell that he wasn't lying.  Brock released his grip on her, and she looked down.

            "I think I need some food," she said, and began to walk.

            "Togi!  Togepi!" Togepi whined softly in her arms.

            "I know, I'll get you food right now, okay Togepi?"  Misty said sweetly to Togepi.  She still had a frightened tone in her voice.

            Ash and Brock looked at each other, then followed Misty to the kitchen.

            About fifteen minutes later, Misty was quaffing down coffee as if she hadn't had a drink in her life.  She hadn't said a word to Brock or Ash since they entered the kitchen, and although she didn't want to admit it, she could feel that neither one of the boys were lying.  They were looking at her so sincerely that she was convinced.  But the fear pronged at her as she thought of her experiences the night before.  She couldn't have been dreaming, could she?  She asked herself that over and over, but she was certain that she was awake.  Misty knew the difference between dreams and real life.

            Ash was sitting down at the counter next to her, and occasionally he glanced worriedly at her.  A couple times he wanted to say something to her, but he was afraid that she was just going to yell at him again.  Something was definitely bothering her. 

            Brock set three plates down on the counter.  They were each stacked with three, fat pancakes drenched in strawberries.  Seeing the delicious meal before him made Ash's mouth water.  Brock placed the plate carefully in front of Misty.  She looked up at him and he smiled pleasantly.  She couldn't help but smile back.

            "Thank you," she said softly.

            "You're very welcome," Brock replied, speaking to her in a kind tone.

            He sat down beside Ash and the three began to eat.  Pikachu and Togepi were also chowing down happily on Brock's Pokémon food.  Ash had just swallowed a mouthful of pancakes when he finally broke the silence between them.

            "Hey, guys, I had the weirdest dreams last night," he said wiping his mouth.  

            "Oh, yeah?" Brock replied, interested.  "What were they about?"

            "I don't know.  But Gary was in one of them. I was upstairs in the Presidential Suite, and I was looking down at him playing roque."

            Brock laughed gently. "That's weird, all right.  But not like my dream.  I dreamt that I was walking the hallways of the hotel, and my siblings kept popping their heads out of the guest rooms.  They kept telling me to come home and stuff."  He laughed again.  "I guess I've been away from home too long."

            "Maybe," Ash agreed.  He turned to Misty.  "Did you dream at all last night, Misty?"

            Misty shrugged.  "Not that I know of."  She was still acting bizarre.

            Brock looked at her in a tender way.  "What happened last night, Misty?" he asked carefully.

            She breathed in deeply.  She glanced up at Ash and Brock, and she could tell by the way they were looking at her that they were innocent.  But if it wasn't them, then what was it? She breathed in deeply and shivered.  

            "It--it was so weird," she started.  "I went to bed like around twelve, and I was sleeping and all 'cause I was so tired.  But, like, a couple minutes later I heard someone walking around outside my room.  And then I heard someone talking, but I couldn't hear anything that was being said."

            Ash and Brock were hanging on her every word. She spoke to them as she played around with some strawberries on her plate with her fork.

            "Wait a second," Brock interrupted.  "You--you heard voices?  People talking?"

            "Well, no, one person talking," Misty corrected, now feeling a little better talking about it.  "Like I said, I thought-- I  thought it was Ash playing a prank on me."

            Ash shook his head.  "I swear Misty, it wasn't me."        

            This time, Misty smiled sensitively.  "I know, Ash."

            She continued, more nervously this time.  She didn't know if Ash and Brock were going to accept the rest of it because it seemed so farfetched.  

            "When I screamed out, thinking it was Ash and all, it stopped.  But later on after I had slept for a while I heard, well, I think I heard a laundry cart or something go by my room."

            A chill ran down Ash and Brock's spine.  This was getting to creepy, but yet the dead-set look on Misty's face confirmed that she wasn't fooling.  They kept silent in order to let her proceed.

            "I-- I thought that that was it.  You know, Ash fooling around.  'Cause I screamed out at him again...." -- Ash was smiling softly the whole time she was telling this-- "...and it stopped again.  So I figured he had gone off to bed.  But then--then--"

            She stopped suddenly and looked at Ash and Brock.  They were so interested, but now their eyes were wide open and barely blinking.  They were breathing steadily and heavily out of their mouths.  The smile on Ash's face had now faded due to the terrified expression Misty wore.  

            "Then what?" Brock asked.

            "More voices," answered Misty, and she choked back a sob.  Her eyes were welling up in tears, though.  "I heard voices again."

            "Wait, wait!" Brock stopped her, his hand raised.  "This time it WAS voices?"

            Misty nodded.  "Hundreds of them.  They--they--" She began to cry loudly.  "They were whispering my name.  Over and over again.  I-- I didn't see anything because I was scared.  But I felt eyes on me, oh God!  _Someone _was watching me, I swear..." At this, she stopped and she cried into her hands.  Ash immediately went to her and began to rub her back in an attempt to calm her.

            Brock stared at her in disbelief.  Her crying mellowed out suddenly, and she grabbed a napkin to wipe her eyes.  Ash could feel that she was shaking.  What the hell is going on? he wondered.

            "I'm sorry," she said, her voice muffled.  

            "No, no! That's okay," Brock said finally.  "I-- I just can't believe it."

            Misty's red eyes met his.  "Serious?" she asked.

            "No I believe you.  But...I don't know, I just feel like this is too crazy.  Are you sure you weren't dreaming?"

            "Brock, I wasn't dreaming," Misty replied.  "It was too real to be a dream."

            Ash smiled at her.  "You're not going psycho on me, are ya Misty?" he joked.

            Misty only shook her head.  "I certainly hope not."

            There was silence now, and each of them were in deep thought.  Finally, Misty raised her head and looked at the two boys beside her.

            "I must have been dreaming," she announced suddenly to Ash and Brock's shock.

            "Why do you say that?" Ash asked.  "Two minutes ago you were sure that you weren't!"

            Misty just shrugged and hugged Togepi.  "I just must have been.  Who am I kidding?  This hotel's not haunted.  There's--there's no such thing as ghosts."

            "Well, there are ghost Pokémon," Ash said.  "Maybe..."

            "No, I know those Pokémon well enough now," Misty said.  "I know it wasn't them.  What happened last night was definitely something out of the ordinary.  That is, if it really DID happen."

            Ash looked to Brock for some sort of explanation, but Brock's face was vague.  But he was thinking.  Or he was scared.  Ash couldn't tell which.

            "I'm going to get dressed," Misty said.  She looked down at Pikachu. "Come up with me, won't you Pikachu?"

            "Pika pika!" Pikachu replied and jumped up onto her shoulder.  

            "I need someone else with me," she said to Ash, and he nodded.

            "Don't let anything get to her, Pikachu," he said, giving Pikachu a thumbs up.

            "Chu pika pikachu!" Pikachu replied, and Misty started up toward the honeymoon suite.  

            When she was out of the room, Ash turned to Brock, who had just gotten up to collect the dirty dishes. 

            "What a morning, huh?" Ash proclaimed, and Brock just shrugged.  

            "You didn't hear anything last night, did you?" Brock asked, looking seriously at Ash.

            Ash shook his head and waved his arms out in front of him.  "Nuh uh."

            Brock returned to his work.  Ash began to help him as well.  

            "What do you think is going on?" Ash asked skeptically.

            Brock sighed.  "I don't know.  I-- I think she was dreaming."

            "You do?"

            "Yeah."

            "Why?"

            "Because I don't believe in ghosts, either."

            Ash could have objected to that himself.  He did believe in ghosts.  He wasn't ashamed to admit that; there was nothing wrong in believing in another world.  He didn't throw the ghost theory away yet as Brock and Misty did.  But he didn't know if he was ready yet to accept that he owned a haunted hotel, either.    He didn't want to see any ghosts, he had already had his fill of that when it came to ghost Pokémon.  But ghost Pokémon weren't scary anymore.  This was something a lot more frightening, something Ash wasn't sure he wanted to handle.

____________________________________________________________________________________

            Outside, in the blistering cold, yet gorgeous, fall morning, Team Rocket sat over a small fire.  They were settled in the bushes beside one of the hotel's many sheds.  They had tried many times to get into one of the sheds to spend the night, but had failed.  James was the first to wake that morning, finding Jessie snuggled up close to him and Meowth between the two of them.  He could feel their body heat, and he was almost convinced that that was the only thing that kept them alive last night, the night being so cold and all.

            Jessie sipped her coffee out of a plastic cup, the same plastic cup she had been drinking out of since two towns back.  They had not had enough time to pick up new supplies, lately.  She didn't care though, the coffee was hot and it tasted good.

            "Are we actually gonna do somethin' today?" Meowth asked.  He was bundled up into a ball in one of the sleeping bags.

            "Yeah, like break into that hotel and terrorize those kids?" James asked, a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

            Jessie nodded.  "Of course!  Now that we know they're alone in there.  This is the perfect opportunity to nab that Pikachu."

            "Oh, sounds like you have an idea!" James cried excitedly.

            Jessie smiled proudly.  "I always have an idea, James."

            "Yeah, unfortunately they never work," Meowth smirked.

            Jessie whacked the cat out of his resting position. "I'm sure this plan's gonna work!  It's almost infallible!"

            James was looking up at the hotel.  "So what is it?"

            Jessie laughed.  "I'll tell you soon.  First, we have to find a way into that hotel."

TO BE CONTINUED. . . . 


	8. Something More Than Just Strange Vibes

Disclaimer:  I don't own Pokémon.  If I did, I would let everyone know what happened to Brock on Valencia Island.  I don't own "The Shining" either.  I hope Stephen King doesn't sue me.

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Last time, Misty discovered that neither Ash nor Brock paid her a visit last night.  If it wasn't them, though, who was it?

Summary:  Weird things are starting to go on at the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  Only this time, Ash is the victim.

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 8:

Something More Than Just Strange Vibes

            Around eleven o'clock later that morning, Misty was still a little on the jumpy side.  Every time Ash or Brock caught her unexpected attention, she would leap up or scream or sometimes both.  She would shake all over and it was even beginning to make her sick.  She wound up taking a couple of Tylenol to get rid of the pounding headache that had somehow befallen her.  Ash tried to get her to do things with him, but she refused, telling him that she wanted to rest.  

            Misty even had Ash and Brock spooked about the hotel.  Neither of them went off on their own the whole day, whether it had been to get a drink or go down to the lobby to check out the front yard.  Misty stuck by both the boys' sides, and whenever they were in a room together and one of them got up, she would immediately jump up and ask where they were going.  They had only been awake since eight that morning, and the three hours that had past seemed like a day.  

            Finally, while sitting in the lounge for about a half an hour, Brock became fed up with the whole business.  Although he was kind of scared about what had happened to Misty the night before, he felt utterly ridiculous playing scardy-cat. He craved to get up and explore the hotel, whether it was haunted or not.  There were still so many rooms and places in the hotel to explore, and he didn't care if Ash or Misty told him he was crazy.

            Still, the feeling that he had experienced yesterday was one that kept popping up into his mind.  The sensation that Misty had described in which "hundreds of eyes were watching her" was suspiciously similar to the way he had felt when the three had walked around the third floor of the hotel.  Earlier before, he was convinced that he had been scaring himself with his own imagination, but now that he wasn't the only one to get strange feelings, it bothered him.  Could he have been dealing with perhaps the same thing that had preyed Misty?

            He shook it out of his head.  It was insane to even think things like that!  There was going to be nothing like that affecting him in this place.  Brock just wouldn't let it.

            "I'm going," he said to the other two, getting up from the slumped position he had been on the couch.

            Ash looked at him in a troubled way.  "Going where?" he asked.

            "I don't know. For a walk," he replied, slowly shuffling out of the room.

            "Where are you walking to?" Misty asked him as if it was even ludicrous to think such a thing.

            Brock shrugged as if he were annoyed.  "Look, I'm not gonna waste the whole day sitting around like a bum!  I'm not scared, and neither should you be.  There's nothing here, okay? _Nothing_."

            Ash and Misty didn't say a word.  Brock sighed. He didn't mean to sound so bad-tempered like that, especially to Misty.  He had to be careful with her today.  Whether or not something did happen to her, he wasn't going to upset her already fragile disposition.  But he wanted to snap them out of this stupid trance that they had fallen into.  Misty could have been dreaming for all they knew, and remaining in one room all day hiding from it was unexceptable to him.

            "I'm sorry," he apologized whole-heartedly.  "I just--I just think that this is stupid.  If we're gonna feel so weird in this place, then we might as well leave.  Because it's not worth staying here to just fear it."

            "I know," Ash replied.  "But I own this place.  I mean, can we leave?"

            Brock laughed a bit.  "What do you mean 'can we leave?'  Of course we can, we're not in solitary confinement!"

            Ash smiled.  "I don't know if I want to leave.  I like it here, and if this place isn't haunted, then I'll feel terrible that we didn't take more advantage of being here."

            Misty didn't utter a word during Ash and Brock's brief conversation.  Her hands trembling a little, she suddenly froze in place.  She held her breath, then exhaled it a bit at a time as to not make a sound or move a muscle. Something totally different now was making her uncomfortable. She was affected by a totally new perception, one that she couldn't explain or put her finger on.  She looked up at Ash and Brock talking, and all of sudden she thought someone else was in the room.  The presence only lasted but a second, but Misty could not doubt it. Someone was looking into the lounge.  She was not facing the doorway, but she sensed it.  Her head quickly turned to the direction of the doorway.  Her heart was pounding.  She let out a small gasp.

            Ash and Brock heard her.  They immediately diverted their attention to her and the terrified look on her face.  Noticing her eyes were somewhat glued to the opposite wall, they spun around to see what the problem was.

            There was nothing there.  Ash and Brock were confused, as was Misty.  The terrified look she had displayed suddenly became one of bafflement as she too noticed that nothing was there.  

            "Misty, are you okay?"

            Misty lifted her head to meet Brock's eyes. She smiled a little.

            "Yeah, I'm okay," she replied, cheerfully at that.  She pointed a finger at both him and Brock and grinned slyly.  "Gothca!"

            Brock and Ash looked at each other, then began to laugh.  Misty watched them reacting to being had, while in the meantime her heart slowly returned to its normal beat.  

            "Now you're creeping me out, Misty!" Ash exclaimed, giving her a playful shove.  "Cut it out!"

            She happily shoved him back.  Ash could have sworn that that was the happiest she had looked all day. Brock was holding his head in his hands, smiling out of relief.  He clapped his hands once to get their attention.

            "I'm goin' exploring," he said, turning to leave.  "Don't wait up for me."

            Misty and Ash waved good-bye to him, and he left.  Walking down the main hallway, he thought about where it was that he wanted to check out the most.  He reached the front lobby and looked out the window.  The day was sunny, but certainly not warm.  He could tell by how the wind was blowing every tree in sight towards the east. Chilly winds.  Blowing towards Pallet Town. Where they probably would have reached by now if they had kept going. He wondered when they would finally resume their trip.  Suddenly, the heater started up again, and Brock felt a blast of hot air hit his legs.  He was standing right beside a vent.  Brock realized now one place where he hadn't been, and that was the basement.  

            "Now, where could the basement be?" he asked himself out loud, and decided to look for it by the main staircase.  Sure enough, a weird shaped door stood there, and he slowly turned the knob, which was a little difficult at first.  The door creaked on the rusty hinges, and Brock wondered if the door had even been opened in last ten years. Fumbling his hands around the walls leading to the basement, he discovered a light switch.   He wouldn't have been surprised if it hadn't turned on, but miraculously it did.  The huge florescent bulbs lit up the winding staircase, and Brock curiously began his way down the stairs.

________________________________________________________________________

            As soon as Brock left, Ash decided that he was getting bored, also.  He was sitting right now in a hotel that was all his, and he didn't even know anything about it.  He glanced at Misty.  About to ask her if she wanted to go for a stroll through the hallways, he suddenly decided not to. Still, he felt bad about leaving her alone in her condition, or maybe making her feel left out.  

            "Hey, Misty?" he said.  She smiled up at him.  "I'm, uh, I think I'm gonna go for a walk, too.  Is--is that okay with you?"

            Misty heart froze.  _He's leaving me alone?_ she thought nervously to herself.  _No, no he can't, he just can't._

            "Fine," she smiled, her body shuddering suddenly.  "Just be careful okay?"

            Ash put his hands on his hips and grinned. "Don't worry about me.  You can come too if you want, of course.  I don't want to leave you alone if you're nervous."

            Misty shook her head.  Deep down, she was having a heart attack.  But she wouldn't let Ash know that.  She produced the bravest smile she possibly could, and waved him off.

            "Go, go have fun," she told him.  "I can fend for myself."

            "Okay," Ash replied.  He started to walk out, but turned back to her.  "Ya sure?"

            Misty nodded. "Yes! Yes! Go!" she ordered him in a friendly manner, and with that he exited the room, Pikachu walking slowly at his heels.  Pikachu looked back at Misty, and she waved to him, letting him know everything was all right.  But Pikachu could sense something was not right.  He thought that he should tell Ash, but wondered if Ash would even believe him.  

            Misty leaned her head back on the coach.  She gazed out the huge window to her right, which showed a spectacular view of the distant mountains.  Beginning to feel queasy, she got up and paced the room.  Thank goodness she didn't feel any presence at the moment, but she was frightened that soon she would.

            "I have to do something to calm myself down," she thought.  She looked down at Togepi, whom she held tightly in her arms.

            "What should I do Togepi?" she asked, feeling a bit foolish for asking a baby Pokémon for advice.

            "Togi! Togi! Priiii!" Togepi screamed gleefully as usual, but since Misty still had trouble understanding, she sighed and set Togepi down.  She looked at him and thought of her other Pokémon, all who had been in their Pokéballs since she had released them into the pool.

            The pool.  That was it!  A huge smile took over her face.  A swim was exactly what she needed right now.  She had always swum in her pool at home when she was stressed out (which was very common), and it tended to make her feel better.  Maybe swimming in the hotel's beautiful pool with all her Pokémon would take her troubling thoughts away.

            She ran to the caretaker's quarters where she had moved most of her stuff that morning, and rummaged through her bag in search of her bathing suit.  She finally found it, stuffed underneath piles of clothes both dirty and clean, and pulled it. She closed the door and slipped it on, which she then covered with her bathrobe.  Hoping that the poolroom would be as warm as it was yesterday, she grabbed Togepi and her Pokéballs, and began swiftly to the pool room.  She was relieved not to feel any strangeness as she made her trip, and soon she reached the poolroom without any trouble.  Misty swung the huge pool room doors open, and the familiar blast of warm air and smell of chlorine that she had know since she was very young greeted her.  Suddenly, her problems melted away.

            Ash, in the meantime, walked casually through the halls of the hotel.  He was on the second floor, which for some reason he considered his favorite.  The third floor had too many winding hallways, much like a maze, and they confused him.  He was worried of even losing his way.  Plus the wacky dream he had about Gary and the Presidential Suite didn't help either.

            He looked down at Pikachu.  "You feeling good, Pikachu?" he asked.

            "Pikachu!" replied Pikachu affirmatively.

            Ash nodded.  He liked this hotel, despite the unusual events that had happened in the last two short days.  They were memorable ones though, he had to admit that.  The battle, the excitement he got when he realized that the hotel was his, the night he spent in the beautiful suite, the delicious meals--

            "Ash."

            Ash froze, and slowly turned around.

            "Who's there?" he asked, his voice shaking. He had heard it, it was certain. But yet it was so faint...no, surely it must have been his imagination.

            "Ash."

            Ash's heart skipped a beat.  The sound was coming from behind him.  He spun around, only to encounter nothing.

            Pikachu looked up at him, and Ash stared at his Pokémon nervously.  "Did you hear that, Pikachu?"

            "Pi?"  Pikachu asked, baffled.

            "You didn't?" Ash asked, looking around again.

            "Ash.....Ash."

            "There it is again!" he yelled out in a panic.  Pikachu watched him in fear.  Why was his trainer suddenly going somewhat insane?

            "Pika pi!" Pikachu pleaded with Ash, asking him what was the matter.

            The whispers began to build up now.  Ash's eyes were wide with fear.  Oh my God, I'm going insane! he thought as his heart began to race.  He started to breathe in uneven heavy breaths, which caused Pikachu to shudder with terror. The Pokémon didn't hear a thing.

            Ash suddenly started walking.  At first, he kept his head straight and his eyes peeled ahead.

            "Ash.....Ash...."  The whispers continued on and on.  Ash couldn't think of one thing.  A hundred thoughts ran through his mind at once.  His pace became faster, and Pikachu was now jogging alongside his friend's side.  He looked worriedly into Ash's alarmed and utterly disorientated face.

            Soon, Ash was running.  He wasn't hearing much of the whispers now, but it had become worse than that.  Someone was following, but he didn't dare turn around.  And he knew damn well that it wasn't Misty or Brock.  Something in his gut had just told him otherwise. Yet the whispers persisted, and he ran faster and faster toward the staircase.

            "Pika pi!  Pikachuuuu!" Pikachu cried, trying to settle Ash down or to at least stop his panic-stricken sprint.

            Ash heard Pikachu, but he did not slow down.  He was convinced now that Pikachu did not hear the whispers, if he had, he wouldn't have been asking him what was the matter.  The stairs were about a hallway away.  Soon, he'd be back in the presence of Misty or Brock, where it was safe...

            "Ash!"  

            The sudden shout of his name stopped him dead in his tracks.  That had not been a whisper.  Someone had just without a doubt called to him.  Ash's heart was unstoppable.  He figured he was going to die, for his head began to throb as well.  His whole body became paralyzed, and his head was slowly drawn to the room he was standing next to.  The shout had come from there.  If there was one thing he was certain of, it was that.

            The room door seemed to stare back at him.  It was room 220.  Ash breathed in deep heavy breaths.  The whispering had stopped.  The strange sensation of someone following him had gone away. He now stood simply at the door with his worried Pikachu by his side.

            "Come on in, Ash."  The whisper again.  It was low, almost as silent as it could be, but Ash picked it up instantly.  He gasped quietly and turned toward the door.

            "In here, Ash," the voice continued. It was definitely coming from the room.  Ash wanted to run away more than anything, but something was keeping him there.  Pikachu tugged at Ash's jeans, hoping to break him away from whatever was keeping his attention. But Ash ignored him.

            "Ash."  The voice, although shocking to Ash, was soothing and beautiful.  Female, also.  For a second, Ash could have sworn that it was his mother's voice.  It had a certain ring to it that made Ash feel comfortable and relaxed.  And it was beckoning him.  Into the room.  But why?

            "Come on in, Ash," the voice continued in its lovely rhythm.  Ash smiled a little. 

            What do you want? he asked the mysterious voice in his head.

            "Come on inside, Ash."

            Ash grabbed at the doorknob.  He tried to turn it before he realized that it was locked.

            "The key, Ash.  Go get the key," sang the voice.

            "I'll go get the key," Ash responded, and he turned on his heels and bolted toward the staircase, leaving Pikachu in his dust.  Pikachu looked up at the door and then chased after Ash.

            He finally reached him in the main lobby, where he saw Ash grab the 220 key off its hook.  Why was he going in there?  Ash dangled the key in his hand, and once again without noticing Pikachu, started up to 220.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .        


	9. The Unwanted Guests

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon or "The Shining."  I am not making money in creating this story, I'm just doing it to entertain you and myself.  Enjoy!

So there is no confusion, all the characters are the same age and appear as they do in the TV Series.

Last time, Ash, Misty, and Brock coped with the horrifying nightly experience Misty had.  After separating to do their own things in the hotel, Ash has found himself in a mysterious situation concerning room 220.

Summary:  Who is summoning Ash into room 220?  What does Brock discover in the hotel's basement?  And what makes Misty run screaming out of the pool?  Our heroes certainly aren't the only ones in the Fireside's Warmth Hotel. . .

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 9:

The Unwanted Guests

            The sound of dripping water was beginning to make Brock insane.  He had been listening to its constant song since he had first planted his feet on the basement's cold, cement floor.  It was quite dark down there, but it didn't take long before his eyes fully adjusted to it.  The waterdrops were about the only sound he was hearing the whole time, but other than that silence prevailed.  Clouds of steam blew out of his mouth and nose--the temperature down there had dropped down into the 40's.  

            The basement was almost like a dungeon.  The walls were all made out of thick, heavy stones, and every entranceway was a magnificent arch.  The very few windows that dotted the upper sections of the walls were protected by metal bars, as well as clouded over with years of dust.  It was almost making Brock shiver.  He didn't know why he was down here.  But despite all the talk going around that so called "ghosts" might inhabit the Fireside's Warmth, he still found it interesting and new.

            Brock realized that the basement's layout plan was more confusing than any of the hallways in the main hotel.  He encountered room and room, all which seemed like the rest, stacked to the ceiling with boxes and chairs, and some filled completely with pipes.  Brock had never seen so many pipes in his life.  The all twisted and turned and crossed each other more times than he could count.

            Looking down at his watch, Brock discovered that he had been down there for twenty minutes.  Twenty minutes of aimlessly walking around sure had gone by fast, and he wasn't sure how Ash and Misty were coping.  He decided that it was best for him to go back up, probably telling them that going into the basement was about as exciting as watching a Metapod vs. Metapod Pokémon battle.

            He turned and began to retrace his steps.  He looked around confusingly, then turned again into another room.  God, they all looked the same to him.  Why did they have to make them all identical?  He stopped and closed his eyes. He was making himself nervous now, and he knew that was the worst thing to do.  Unfortunately, he also realized that he had no clue where he was.  Brock took deep breaths, then opened his eyes again, and searched around for something familiar.  He was relieved when he finally spotted something that he had remembered seeing--or was it?

            "Okay, okay, this is great," Brock muttered to himself, rubbing his temples.

            He shrugged to himself, and walked around some more.  He couldn't believe it.  Every room was just like the last, every entranceway arch was alike, and the dripping water was beginning not only to annoy him, but to creep him out.  Suddenly, he felt like he was in a dungeon, some sort of forbidden castle chamber.  For some reason now, he found himself walking more swiftly.  He chose no particular destination, he just kept walking from room to room to room.  His swift walking turned spontaneously into jogging.  Where the hell was the damn staircase?  He repeated the question over and over in his head, and a couple times he even said it out loud.   The basement seemed like a blur now.  He wasn't even sure if he was going around in circles.  He didn't know what he was sure of now.

            Without warning, he crashed into a tower of boxes.  He had not been looking where he was going, and his swinging arm seemed to have knocked into it.  The boxes came down with a thud, a heavy thud since they seemed to be filled with many massive objects.  He hopped out of the way of the collapsing boxes, and one specific box broke open as it hit the ground.   Newspapers and other old paperwork spilled out onto the floor near his feet.  Some were wrapped together with string, others were loose.  Brock bent down to clean up the mess.  He set the box upright, and one by one put the bundles of papers back in the box.  They were so old that some were rubbing off into motes of dust in his hands.  Suddenly, he came across a book amidst the disintegrating paper.  He slowly brought it to his face to scrutinize it more carefully.  Wiping the dust off the cover, it read out in the most striking gold calligraphy:  My Scrap Book.

            Brock repeated the title out loud and smiled.  Pulling up one of the fallen boxes as a chair, he sat down and carefully opened the fragile cover of the hotel's historic collection of stories.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Ash quivered slightly as he made his way up the main staircase to room 220, his uneventful destination.  Pikachu tagged softly behind, looking up at his trainer with fretful eyes.  The daze that Ash had fallen into about ten minutes before had not gone away. The lone brass key jingled rhythmically on its ring in Ash's hand.  Ash knew where he was going, but why he did not yet know.  The whispers that had been pursuing him moments ago had once again died down, and as much as Ash wanted to get away from them as fast as he could, he could not fight the curiosity the inner child within him possessed.  He thought about them as he walked down the dimly lit hallways, wondering whether or not what he heard was just his imagination or in fact the callings of what Misty believed were that of another world.

            Ash sort of believed it, as well.  "Why am I doing this?" he asked himself out loud for about the hundredth time.  Pikachu looked up at him, hoping that Ash finally realized that he was there. But unfortunately Ash's mind and eyes were somewhere else.

            "Pika pi!" Pikachu cried desperately to get Ash's attention.  Ash did not reply.  Pikachu could tell that they were nearing where Ash had been standing in a daze moments before, and for the first time it frightened him.  Ash was paying no attention to him, as if he weren't there at all.  Pikachu hoped that Ash would come to his senses soon, even if he had to thundershock him back to them. Ash was under some sort of unexplainable spell, and it was scaring him more by the minute.

            Room 220 loomed in the near distance. Ash reached it and stopped, looking up at the door's shiny number plate and then down at the gold-plated doorknob.  He ceased his breathing for a second, but the whispers that he was expecting did not come.  Maybe they were in his mind the whole time.  No matter what is was, Ash still felt drawn to 220.  He hadn't seen a normal room yet anyway, and it was his hotel, so why not a little look-see?

            Ash slipped the key into the hole.  Pikachu stood back a bit uneasy.  The door opened as soon as Ash pushed it a bit, creaking on its hinges.  Poking his head into the room, Ash glanced around.  Sunlight hit his eyes instantly, causing him to squint.  He moved one of his legs into the room and slipped in gradually.  Ash wasn't sure what was keeping him from freely opening the door and walking in.  He eventually got himself into the room, only leaving the door open a crack.  

            Pikachu was about to follow when the door suddenly swung the opposite way, slamming soundly in his face.

            "Pikachu?" he asked, alarm rising in his voice. 

            His eyes flew around the room.  Although it was a normal guest room, it was still spectacular.  It was a single bedroom, but the bed was gigantic and beautiful.  Lovely hardwood furniture dotted the room.  A 35-inch TV sat on a massive dresser.  Ash jumped back a bit when he unexpectantly caught his reflection in a hidden mirror on the opposite side of the room.  His heart pounding, he smiled and laughed at his stupidity.

            "Ash."

            Ash froze again.  This time his mind was boggling.  Was he imagining this?  "What is it?" he asked softly.

            "Come on in, Ash.  Don't be afraid."

            Ash's eyes were wide with terror.  He wanted to run, he wanted so badly to turn the other way, but something was keeping him.  He could compare the feeling to the ones you have in a dream when you know something's chasing you, but you can't seem to move your legs.  Ash couldn't even turn his head towards the door now, a force upon him was restricting him intensely.

            "Ash....oh, Ash.  Come on in Ash."

            "I am in," Ash said weakly in the softest tone, pointed in the only direction his feet would allow him, and that was away from the door, which Pikachu was now beginning to scratch on desperately.

            "Come on in," the voice repeated once again.  It was that same delicate female's voice.  Now Ash's head was turned towards the bathroom.  The voice seemed to come from there.

            "No....no," Ash thought to himself.  But he couldn't help it.  His feet were moving again, taking slow and shaky strides towards the bathroom.  Ash wanted to stop so badly that it was killing him.  His heart pounded at an unstoppable rate, and a hot sweat was breaking on his brow.  His body shook as if he were in the snow with no clothing on. But he still walked on.

            "That's right, Ash.  Come on in.  Good boy."  

            Ash walked cautiously into the bright white room.  It was a huge bathroom, in fact it was too roomy. Ash's eyes darted around it.  The whisper stopped again, but his nervousness did not.  Finally, his head fastened on the bathtub.  It stood there in the loneliest corner of the room, its magnificent shower curtain drawn around it, enclosing it entirely.

            Ash couldn't comprehend why he was staring at the bathtub inquiringly, but his eyes narrowed at it, and he began to walk closer toward it.  His heavy and unstable breathing remained with him as his arm slowly but surely extended towards the curtain.  His hand wrapped around the slippery surface of the curtain, but he grasped it tightly in his hand. "Why am I doing this?" Ash asked himself.  "Why don't I feel so good?  Oh God, what's happening?"  

            With a deep inhalation of air, he pulled the curtain back with a whoosh, and gaped down at the most ghastly scene of his life.  With a deafening scream, he tore out of the room.

____________________________________________________________________________________

            Brock flipped through the hotel's scrapbook, taking in every picture and reading almost every article.  The articles ranged from the year of the hotel's opening in 1911 till the most recent, which was pasted to the last page of the scrapbook dated 1993, when Mr. Vrenden took over the Fireside's Warmth.  Brock loved looking at all the pictures, seeing all of the hotel's visitors and operators from years past.  The pictures that interested him the most were those from the mid 30s and 40s, when the hotel was in its heyday.  The most glamorous parties and celebrations were held in those years, bringing around the area's most prestigious people.

            Brock also discovered an amazing fact while flipping through the yellowed pages.  Mr. Vrenden and his father were not the only ones in their family in charge of the hotel.  The hotel itself was planned out and built by a Vrenden also, and the hotel had always been a family owned business.  Brock found it rather sad that Mr. Vrenden left it to them instead of his family, but he figured that that was not their problem now.  If that's what Mr. Vrenden wanted, then so be it.  It kind of seemed, however, that Mr. Vrenden was in a hurry of some sort to get rid of it.  Why wouldn't he want to own his own family heirloom?

            Despite this, Brock shrugged to himself and smiled.  He liked the hotel, and was actually beginning to form a love for it.  It amazed him, and never in his life had he spent much time in a place like it.  For a second or two, he wished that he had battled Mr. Vrenden for it.  He knew that he would have appreciated it more than Ash, who only wanted a badge in the first place and probably would have traded it now for one.  But Brock shook the thought out of his head immediately.  Ash owned it, and that was that.  Brock never liked to be jealous.  He sure did love this hotel, though.  He didn't have to push that out of his mind--there was nothing wrong with that.

            "Brock. . ."

            The very silent whisper floated through the air. Brock looked up instantly, confused.  "Ash, Misty?  That you?"

            Silence.  Brock shook his head wildly.  "I need more sleep," he said with a small laugh and turned back to the scrapbook.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Misty let her bathrobe drop onto one of the pool's many lounge chairs and smiled brightly at the aqua water of the pool.  She was right, it did make her feel better.  Togepi sat down on the same lounge chair, and babbled happily at his trainer.  Misty smiled back at him, and sat down on the side of the pool, letting her feet wade around in the shallow portion of the pool.  The water was at a pleasant temperature, and the feel of it against her skin was most zestful.

            She finally decided to slip into the pool's refreshing waters.  She dunked her head under immediately to get used to the water.  Surfacing, she wiped the few wet strands of hair that had fallen over her eyes.  Taking a deep breath, she dove under once again with her eyes closed tightly, and did a couple of flips.  Misty absolutely _loved _this pool.

            Togepi squealed joyfully to her, and she waved back.  "I'm just gonna swim for a while, okay?  Be good."

            Although she loved to swim, she was always worried about the chlorine situation of the pool.  Too much of the chemical sometimes irritated her eyes.  It never seemed to bother her sisters' eyes.  Maybe that was what made her different from them. It always took her a while to get the nerve to open her eyes under the water, and today was no exception.  Swimming towards the shallow section, she carefully placed her feet on the pool's floor.  

            Checking on Togepi once again, she smiled, took a deep breath and dove into the water facing the deep section.  She glided gracefully under the water, and after she had been under a while she decided to open her eyes.  The water hit her eyes with a semi-cold burst, but soon she squinted enough to adjust her blurry vision.  Her skewed eyes suddenly shot open.  The water was not the crystal-clear blue it had been three seconds ago.  It was red.  Blood red.

            Her remaining held breath shot through her nose at full blast and she surfaced abruptly.  Even though the water was stinging her eyes a little she gaped in horror towards the opposite side of the pool.  Very slowly, the pool's blue water was spreading out into a deep, dark red.  Misty froze and watched it creep closer to her until she finally bolted out of the pool.  It was usually difficult to run through water, but it seemed to not get in her way now.

            She slipped running up the pool's descending staircase, hitting her upper shin.  The pain didn't seem to affect her much for she sprinted over to Togepi and grabbed him.  She didn't even dare look back at the pool, the fear inside of her was directing her one way and one way only--out.

            Gasping out of fear and a little bit of disbelief, she crashed through the pool's heavy door, and nearly tripped several times to get her momentum going.  Tears began to cloud her eyes as she ran as fast as her legs allowed her down the long corridor.  Blasts of chilled air hit her sopping wet body but she didn't give a damn.  Whatever the hell that was in the poolroom, whether it be real or just another absurd figment of her imagination, she didn't want anything to do with.  And another thought ran through her mind as well--she didn't want anything to do with this hotel.  It was only till she reached the hotel's main lobby that she began to let out horrifying, blood-curdling screams.

            Her screams were matched almost instantly by Ash's, whose weren't as high-pitched but just as loud.  As she bolted into the lobby Ash came rampaging down the stairs two steps at a time. His head was beet red from screaming, his brow glazed with sweat.

            Brock didn't know how he found his way out of the basement, but he was brought instantly out of his dilemma from the sound of Ash and Misty's intense screaming.  Without a second thought he dropped the scrapbook on the floor and raced through room after room of the meandering basement and found the stairs in a flash.  He vaulted up the stairs so fast that it seemed he was flying.

            Ash and Misty nearly collided into each other at the base of the grand staircase.  Frozen stiff in fear and shock they stared at each other, tears starting to stream down each of their faces.  Their breaths came out in heavy puffs and each of their eyes were fixated on the other's.  Misty could read the terror in Ash's chestnut-brown eyes while her deep blue eyes displayed the same to Ash.  Almost as if they could read each other's thoughts, they began to sob and threw their arms around each other.

            Brock crashed through the basement door and ran as fast as he could to where the crying was coming from.  As soon as he spotted Ash and Misty he halted in disturbance.  Thousands of thoughts ran through his head as he started up again toward his obviously distraught friends.  Kneeling on the floor at the base of the stairs, Ash and Misty grasped each other and wept soundly into each others shoulders.

TO BE CONTINUED. . . 


	10. Can't Go Home Anymore

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.  If I did, Misty's Song would have been included in Pikachu's Jukebox!  I don't own "The Shining," either.  I'm glad I don't though, 'cause if I did, it would have been a really stinky book.  Bravo Stephen King!

Last time, Ash and Misty experienced frightful incidents.  Brock, in the meantime, became interested in the Fireside's Warmth's past.

Summary:  Ash and Misty finally come to the conclusion that the Fireside's Warmth Hotel is haunted.  But when they suggest leaving, to their surprise, Brock refuses!  What's up with him?

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 10:

Can't Go Home Anymore

            The huge fireplace crackled before them, sending tiny flaming sparks scattering in various directions.  Brock watched the sparks fly and sighed as he poked at the blaze to give it more oxygen.

His attention was directed toward the fire for quite some time now.  Silence dominated the room, a silence that was all too awkward. Behind him, Ash and Misty sat on the couch staring blindly into space.  He wanted to help them so bad, but neither of them had spoken a word since he found them sobbing in each other's arms.  The few times that he glanced at them, he could see terror drawn on their faces. 

             Misty was still crying, but now the huge tears she had been shedding turned into small streams down her face.  Large puddles of tears were welled up in the base and corners of her eyes.  Her nose was running slightly, and occasionally she lifted her hand to wipe it.  She rocked back and forth rhythmically, her small Togepi clutched tightly in her arms.  Sometimes she would be biting down on her bottom lip, so hard that it would turn white.

            Ash, on the other hand, was a bit more calm at the moment, but the look on his face was far more distraught than the one on Misty's.  He had turned incredibly pale, so pale that Brock could have mistaken him for having a bad case of the flu.  In fact, he was as white as a ghost.  The tears that had been pouring out of his eyes not ten minutes ago had ceased, leaving his eyes and cheeks a swollen shade of red.  He breathed hard but at a normal speed.  Pikachu was worried extremely for his trainer, and Brock watched sadly as the Pokémon tried to get Ash's attention, rubbing soothingly against his legs and arms.  But Ash did not stir.  Brock also noticed that Ash's hat was not on his head like it had been when they had last parted.

            Brock sighed heavily again, and looked worriedly at his friends.  "Guys," he started in the calmest tone he could, "I--I don't know what happened, so if you want me to help you, you have to tell me what the problem is."

            He couldn't even remember how many times he had said that.  But suddenly this time, Misty looked down at him, a fresh batch of tears rolling down her cheeks.

            "We have to get out of here," she said, her voice cracking and slightly muffled from her crying.

            This brought Ash back to earth, but all he could do was look sincerely into Brock's eyes and nod.

            Brock was confused and his eyes darted around the room.  "Why?  What happened?"  This time, his voice had an inclination of demand in it.

            Misty shook her head and closed her eyes tightly, lifting her face toward the ceiling.  A small sob escaped her and she looked back down at him, then at Ash, whose gaze met hers.  Somehow, although she didn't know quite what his story was, she could tell that something as horrible or even more had befallen him.

            "Oh, God," she muttered.  "I. . . I don't want to talk about it. Oh God, help me!"

            She buried her face in her hands.  Ash squeezed over towards her on the couch, and Brock went up to her.  Brock began to stroke her head gently and he gazed almost lovingly into her face.  

            "Misty," he said softly.  "What happened?  You can tell me.  I want to help you, you know that!"  He looked over at Ash, who he had to get a story out of as well.

            "Were you with her?" Brock asked the pale-faced Ash, and Ash shook his head languidly.

            Brock turned back to Misty.  "Misty, tell me.  Was this like what happened to you last night?"

            Misty shook her head.  Brock shrugged.  Ash turned the opposite way again.  He swallowed heavily, and Brock realized that he had a real problem on his hands here.  "Ash. . ." he began.            

            "The pool!" Misty suddenly gasped, looking with wide eyes at her two friends.  "The--the pool.  It. . .it. . .something happened."

            Brock had realized that it had been something to do with that.  He had to put a blanket over Misty as soon as he discovered them.  Ash's clothes were also wet from holding Misty.  Having run out of the pool without a towel or bathrobe could only spell trouble.

            "What happened at the pool Misty?" Brock asked.

            "Blood," she said plainly.  "The--the water turned to blood."

            "Misty. . ." Brock started.

            "I saw it!" Misty blared. She began to cry heavily now.  "I saw it, Brock! Don't please don't tell me I didn't!  I know I did!  I just know!"

            "It's okay, it's okay," Brock immediately replied, hugged her tightly as she cried on his shoulder.

            Just then, seeing and hearing what Misty had just announced, Ash started to breathe more heavily and tears leaked slowly out of his eyes.  Brock turned to him.

            "Oh God, Ash, please don't tell me you to. . ."

            Ash nodded grievously, but he immediately contradicted himself.  "No....no I didn't see blood.  Something worse--"

            "What?!" Brock exclaimed, still holding Misty in his arms.  Only now, Misty turned her attention to Ash.

            "I--I went into 220," Ash explained although it was a little tough.  "Room 220.  I don't know why I went in, it was almost like something inside of me was telling me to go in there."

            "Oh God," Misty muffled loudly.  "You--you didn't see anything up there, did you?  Please tell me you didn't."

            Ash didn't respond, which was what Misty had feared the most.  "The bathroom.  I went into the b-bathroom.  But it wasn't right.  Something wasn't right.  I knew there was somebody in there, so when I--when I...."  he trailed off gradually, sending Misty and Brock into complete suspense.

            "She was in the bathtub!" Ash screamed loudly.  "I saw her in the bathtub! She--she was dead!"

            His heart began to race as he recalled the horrible experience in his mind.

            "Ash!  Ash, listen to me!"  Brock shouted.  "Who was it, Ash?  Who was it?"

            "I don't know!" Ash replied fearfully.  "But--but she looked at me!  And then she smiled at me..."

            "Ash!" It was Brock again.  "Ash, is there really a dead person upstairs?  In the bathtub?  Are you sure?"

            Ash didn't reply once again, but continued.  "She looked at me, Brock!  Right into my eyes! She was dead, but she WASN'T DEAD!"

            "That's impossible!" Brock replied.  "Is she real Ash?  Can you answer that?"

            "I don't know!" Ash cried desperately.  "I don't know, I ran!  I don't know if it was real." His voice lowered.  "I hope it wasn't. . ."

            Brock didn't know what to say.  Just when he was ready to accept that the Fireside's Warmth Hotel was not haunted or couldn't possibly be, this had to happen.  But he just couldn't accept it.  Ghosts weren't real!  This could not be happening.  There had to be an explanation.  There had to be.  But how could he explain Misty's night as well?

            Brock got up.  Ash grabbed his arm suddenly.  He stared down into Ash's terror-filled eyes and quivering lips.  "I want to go home, Brock."

            "But Ash..." Brock said.

            "Now!" Ash added.  "Please Brock!  I want to go home now.  I don't want to be here any more!"

            Misty joined in as well.  "Me too.  Brock, something's terribly wrong here!  The hotel doesn't want us!  It's made itself clear!"

            "Look at what you're saying!" Brock said incredulously.  "You acting like the hotel has a mind of its own!"

            "Brock!" Misty cried, grabbing the boy by the shirt.  "I am not spending another night in this hotel!  Please, let's go!  Now!"

            Brock released himself from Misty's grip and looked worriedly into the faces of his two younger friends.  Scared children, that's all they were.  Scared over nothing.  Brock stood firmly in his belief that the Fireside's Warmth Hotel was not haunted.  If it was, how come nothing had happened to him?  Suddenly, his breathing seemed to freeze.  It was only now that the event that occured the day before on the third floor came to him.  He remembered clearly the frightening presence that he had felt behind him as he, Ash, and Misty made their way around the hotel.  Still not to sure though, he put it aside.  Of course he had felt funny the past couple of days, but that could have been nothing.  He recalled that as a child he had sometimes experienced similar feelings, and his mother had told him that it was all in his mind.  And it was that principle that Brock had turned to whenever he felt scared of something.  This time was not going to be an exception.  He wasn't going to allow Ash and Misty to get scared over nothing, either.

            "Okay," he said, a little weakly but all the same certain.  He began to walk out of the room, slightly shuffling his feet.

            "Oh my God, where are you going?!" Misty demanded fearfully.

            Brock stood almost as stiff as a statue.  "Gonna check out 220."

            Ash's eyes widened.  "No Brock! Don't go up there!"

            "Ash!" Brock said with anger rising in his tone.  "Would you calm down!  You may be right, Ash, there might be something up there.  But I'm not so sure that it's a ghost, I mean. . ."  He paused for a moment.  "There very well might be a dead person up there.  For real."

            Ash wanted to protest, but the look of determination in Brock's face told him not to. He was so sure, in fact utterly positive that his "encounter" had very surely rolled its eyes to fixate on his, and its mouth curled into the most grotesque, evil smile that he had ever seen. He looked over at Misty, who stared at Brock haggardly. Ash could tell that she too wasn't quite fond of Brock's sudden decision.

            Brock turned again to leave.      

            "Be careful!" Misty called out to him softly.

            Brock looked sincerely into her eyes.  "Don't worry about me."

            Once he left, Ash and Misty sat back.  They looked at each other, then back at the fire.  The urges to run out grew steadily within them.  Misty almost hoped that Brock would see something disturbing up there, if it would just convince him to leave the Fireside's Warmth. . .forever.

____________________________________________________________________________________

            Brock walked at a leisurely, relaxed pace up the hotel's main staircase, the same one Ash had been flying down in horrifying panic not much earlier.  He tried to fight the little bit of fear that was starting to arise within him, but he couldn't help but shiver a little bit as he made his way closer and closer to room 220.  Ghosts weren't on his mind, however.  He had scared himself stupid just moments ago when he had realized that there really could be a carcass in the guest room's bathtub.  

            One by one, thoughts and accusations flew through his mind rapidly.  If there was something up there, could it have been that Mr. Vrenden wanted to get away from the Fireside's Warmth for another reason other than retiring?  More like, trying to hide a gruesome murder?

            "No, no!" Brock scolded himself.  "What the hell am I thinking?"

            He neared the feared room slowly to discover the door ajar.  A single room key hung from the brass lock.  Brock pulled it out and stuffed it deep into his pants pocket.  Hesitantly, he made his way into the room, looking around cautiously in every corner.  As much as he hated it, his heart was beginning to pound.   Jumping at the same mirror reflection that Ash had, Brock shook his head and held his hand up to his racing heart.

            Seeing something on the floor out of the corner his eye, he glanced down, only to discover that it was Ash's hat.  He picked it up and gripped it tightly in his hand, then continued in his search.  Slowly, he shifted his eyes toward the bathroom door, which was wide open.  The bathtub stood there serenely, its curtain drawn.  Brock carefully placed one foot in front of the other as he trudged nearer and nearer to the bathtub.  He was now fully in the bathroom, but the bathtub looked like it was a million miles away.

             Clenching his teeth, he raised his hand up to the curtain.  In one whoosh, almost like pulling off a Band-Aid, he yanked the curtain back.  He looked down in the bathtub, his heart about to leap out of his chest.

            Nothing.  There was nothing in the tub at all.  Relatively confused and a bit astonished, he searched around the small bathtub.  Finally he breathed a sigh of relief.  Grinning slightly, he ran both hands through his hair and scratched his head.  Ash had been imagining it.  That had to be it.  At least there wasn't really a dead person up there.  Brock didn't know what he was going to do if he had found one.

            He turned to leave and walked more slowly and relaxed out of the bathroom.  He didn't know what he was going to say to Ash or Misty when he got down there.  All he could see in his mind was the looks of desperate wanting to leave in their faces.  A little bit of him wanted to leave as well, but he still couldn't shake how wonderful the hotel seemed to him.  If only Ash and Misty knew what a historic place they had been staying in. . .

            WHOOSH.  Brock froze in his place, and turned around slowly back to the bathroom.  That's where the sound had come from, he was sure.  It sounded...well it sounded almost like the curtain had been pulled back.  Which was exactly what Brock hoped that he didn't hear. That familiar bolt of terror struck him again, and without thinking twice he ran out of room.  Grabbing the doorknob on the way, he slammed the door shut with a tremendous bang and dashed away as fast as he could away from that room.  Suddenly, the principle that his mother had taught him ten years ago escaped his memory, and the real fright set in.  

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Outside, it was clearly the coldest day  yet since the summer months had ended.  Team Rocket  was shivering once again, only now it had become more unbearable.  Jessie had been sitting hunched over, desperately rubbing her legs to get her circulation running. Meowth hadn't been complaining much lately as he had been; now he was wrapped up in one of the blankets that they carried around with them.  James watched the hotel attentively from time to time, hoping to see one of those notorious twerps emerge.  It would be the perfect time to attack, and they would have never expected it.

            "James, we have to get inside that hotel," Jessie said, her voice shaking from the cold.  

            James looked at her.    "If you want," he replied, crouching down to her.  "How should we go about doing this?"

            James wasn't sure if Jessie shrugged or not, he couldn't tell by how much she was shivering.  Meowth looked up interestedly.

            "We're goin in? Finally?" Meowth's eyes lit up.

            Jessie smiled, and the usual scheme-filled look taking over her face.  "I'm not sure, but I think there's a servants' entrance in the back.  If it's open, we can get in easily and hide in the pantry!"

            "And if it's locked?" Meowth asked, his eyes narrowing now.

            "Yeah?" James agreed.

            "Well, if it is, then we'll find another way in.  Knowing these brats, they probably left some sort of door or window open, anyway.  And when we do get in there, we'll unleash our new brilliant plan."

            "Which is?" James asked.  "You still haven't told us!"

            Jessie smiled.  "Trust me, you'll find out soon."

            James and Meowth didn't bug her to find out.  They were too cold to do anything right now.  Packing up their stuff, they began to head towards the hotel.  Every chance they got they would hide behind a tree or shrub.  They finally reached the roque court, and inspected the surrounding area.  Without saying a word, Jessie pointed at a small, country-like door.  Their ticket in.  With huge grins on their faces, they moved steadily towards it.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .


	11. The Third Night

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon or "The Shining."  This was just an idea that had been plaguing my mind for months!  I am not getting any money out of this!

Last time, Ash and Misty told their stories to Brock, who is still not ready to believe yet that the hotel is haunted.  However, he thought different after he had a mild scare in room 220 himself.  Meanwhile, Team Rocket is planning on breaking into the hotel.

Summary: Despite their pleas to leave the hotel, Brock forces them to stay one more night.  But that was all the hotel needed.  

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 11:

The Third Night

            Brock returned to the lobby where Ash and Misty had patiently awaited his arrival.  As soon as he entered the room, the two bolted up immediately, a look of hope in their eyes.  He said nothing as he walked up silently to them, his head and eyes pointed down.  When he reached them, he looked up at them and simply shook his head.

            "Nothing," he said frankly.  He handed Ash his hat, and Ash accepted it with a small smile.

            "Thanks," he said softly.  He did not put it on, he merely gripped it tightly in his hands.  He couldn't believe that Brock had not seen a thing.  Swearing that he had would have only made Brock more upset, so he stayed quiet and silently accepted Brock's report.

            Misty's gaze shot towards Brock.  "What about the pool, Brock?  You didn't go to the pool.  Trust me, it was as red as blood!  I saw it!"

            Brock closed his eyes and shushed her quietly.  "Misty, you've told me before that chlorine bothers your eyes.  It was probably just that."

            Misty gasped loudly in shock and disgust.  "Oh my God, Brock!  I know what I saw!  Chlorine does not do that to your eyes!"

            Brock didn't reply. He buried his head in his hands and rubbed his aching temples.  The grandfather clock loudly chimed ten, which was a surprise to the three terror-stricken kids.  Ash felt nauseous from barely eating anything that day.  But he wasn't sure if he felt sick from what he had experienced, either. Whether or not his body was asking for food, he didn't have much of an appetite anyhow.

            "You know," Brock began, talking in a calm voice, "what we could really use is a good night's sleep.  Just tonight."

            "Brock, no! I told you I'm not spending another night here!" Misty complained.  

            "Just tonight!" Brock repeated, much more forcefully this time.  The effect of his voice caused Misty to shrink back and fall silent.  

            Ash didn't say a thing.  He looked down at Pikachu, who the whole time had stayed close to Ash.  He could feel that Ash was frightened, but another force much stronger was beginning to bother Pikachu.  Ash bent down and picked Pikachu up, cradling the Pokémon like a baby. He didn't agree with Brock, either, but as soon as he heard the blasts of cold winds against the windows, he quickly reconsidered leaving.

            Misty was looking down at the ground.  She looked like she was ready to cry.  A period of silence lasted between the three, until she finally spoke up calmly in a shaky tone.

            "There is NO way I'm spending the night alone," she said, her eyes wide.

            "I wasn't expecting that we would," Brock replied.  "We'll sleep in the caretaker's quarters again.  Tomorrow. . . tomorrow we can think about leaving."

            "Not think!" Ash put in.  "We WILL leave!  I don't want to be here anymore!"

            "Me neither," Misty agreed once again.

            With that,  Ash, Misty, and Brock headed back down the familiar main hallway towards the caretaker's quarters. Ash felt a blast of relief as they entered the quarters. No bad experiences had happened here, and it gave Ash a protective feeling.  As soon as he saw the huge bed he had spent the night in two nights ago, he felt drawn to it.  None of the kids had their sleeping attire with them, it had all been left in the rooms they had slept in last night.  Misty didn't care, and Ash and Brock shrugged it off.  Ash wished that he could have gotten out of his old clothes, but at this point, nothing else was important to him.  Just as long as he made it through the night in one piece. They simply kicked off their shoes and that was it.  

            "I'll take the couch again," Brock said, pointing down at it.

            "Oh no you don't!" Misty warned.  "I am not spending the night alone at all.  We can all sleep in Ash's bed.  It's big enough."

            "But Misty, we'll be cramped!" Ash complained.  "We're all in the same apartment.  You'll be fine."

            Misty shook her head and grabbed the two boys' clothes.  "We ARE spending the night in the same room!" she shouted, with a face that made both Ash and Brock sweatdrop.  "UNDERSTOOD?!"

            Ash and Brock nodded nervously.  In no time, the three settled down in the bed, all exhausted but all the same frightened. Misty insisted on sleeping between Ash and Brock, claiming she felt more protected.  As soon as they were silent, Misty exhaled deeply, feeling the warmth radiating out of her two friends.  For the first time all day, she felt safe.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            "Oww, my toe!" James screamed in a whisper.

            "What happened?" Jessie whispered back.  She reached her hands out to find him.  It was pitch black except for the faint amount of moonlight drifting in through the windows.  

            "I stubbed my toe on something!" James complained through ground teeth.  "It hurts so bad!"

            "Would you shaddup?!" Meowth ordered.  "They'll hear us!"

            James continued to groan and limp as they tried their best to make their way through the hotel's dark kitchen.  It seemed like night had fallen so suddenly, but they realized that when they entered the hotel it was already late dusk.    Jessie led the way with Meowth on her shoulder, and James following closely behind, holding on tightly to Jessie's shoulders.  They had no idea where they were going, they were just happy to be out of the cold for the first time in a week.  Their frostbitten limbs slowly defrosted in the hotel's humid, blasting heat.

            "Find a light switch, would ya?" Meowth insisted, getting annoyed at the dark.  His eyes were beginning to play tricks on him, as well.  

            "I'm trying! I'm trying!" Jessie replied impatiently. "It's kinda hard when it's so dark you can't see an inch in front of you!"

            Suddenly, Jessie walked straight into a wall, causing of course a huge crashing sound.  She fell silent.

            "You okay, Jess?" James asked.  "What happened?"

            Jessie groaned.  "Wall. . ."

            The collision had sent Meowth flying off her shoulder and plummeting to the floor.  He landed with a thud.  Fortunately, his keen cat eyesight had finally adjusted to the dark.  Through the faint reflections his eyes were producing, he could see the smallest streak of light protruding from beneath a door.

            "Hey, youse guys!  Over here!" he cried happily.  "I found light!"

            "Where?" Jessie asked, still shuddering from the sudden violent encounter with the wall.  

            James was now walking past her, his arms out in front of him protectively.  "You're right, Meowth!"  Reaching about in front of him, he felt a doorknob.  He gasped excitedly when it turned with no problem, revealing one of the food pantries.

            "Ha!  One of dose twerps musta forgot ta shut da light off!" Meowth guessed. 

            "What luck!" James declared.  Jessie didn't say a thing. James looked back at her, noticing she was rubbing her head.  He smiled, and grabbed for her.  She followed, her eyes lighting up as he saw the huge amounts of food before her.

            "Chow time!" she shouted, and without hesitation, the three began to help themselves.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Three short hours had passed since Ash, Misty, and Brock had collapsed for the night.  Despite everything that had happened, they had no problem whatsoever falling asleep.  They had all huddled together at some point, for when Brock awoke suddenly he could feel Misty's warm body pushed up against his. He raised his head to see that Ash had scrunched up closer to Misty, which in turn had pushed her into Brock.  Brock smiled warmly, glad that the night had gone so well so far. 

            He wasn't sure what had woken him up. . .until he heard the music.  At first, he believed it to be the heater.  But after concentrating on it enough, he realized that he was hearing something entirely different.  

            "What the heck is that?" he asked himself, slowly swinging his legs out from under the huge throw-blanket that they had atop of them.  The cold air hit his body immediately and he shivered.  Feeling around for his shoes, he slipped his feet in.  Without tying the laces, he shuffled his way into the sitting room, where he turned on the faintest light in the room.  The music or whatever it was could still be heard, and it bothered Brock more every second.

            He opened the door, and the sound of music floated up to his ears.  That's what it was, he was sure of it now.  But where was it coming from?

            Since they had first arrived, they never shut the lights off in the hallway.  They considered it more safe that way.  That, and the fact that they didn't know how to shut them off!  Brock walked slowly down the hallway, following the music as closely as possible.  It was certain that it was coming from the bottom floor, for it was getting quite louder as he walked closer towards the lounge and dining room. 

            Near the lounge, the music blasted.  Brock followed it even more closely until he came upon the hotel's bar. Sure enough, the huge antique jukebox in the far corner was on and alive, blasting out what Brock recognized as "In the Mood," the famous swing song from the 1930's.

            "How did this get on?" Brock asked himself, walking over to it.  He shrugged.  "Must've been a short circuit."

            He reached to turn off the jukebox but stopped.  He smiled and decided to let the song play out.  He hadn't heard it much, and he liked it. His eyes darted around the bar.  Being one of the few rooms they had not been in, he was curious.  The bar was beautiful in its entirety, made of shiny hard wood, and red barstools ran all the way alongside it.  Brock smiled as he climbed atop one of the stools.  To his surprise, it felt strangely warm.

            When Brock looked up, his eyebrows rose.  On the shelves behind the bar sat bottles after bottles of liquor, all lined up, neatly glimmering in the dim light.  Brock scrutinized the shiny bottles, and to his shock his mouth began to water.    A memory flashed back to him in an instant, one from his recent childhood.  He recalled how his mom used to let him sip her wine at dinner every night.  Brock always heard that wine tasted yucky, but he liked it.  He liked how it tingled as it went down his throat.  

            Now as he looked up at the bottles of alcohol, the crave for that one sip of his mom's wine flooded his body.  He got up slowly and made his way behind the bar. 

            "I shouldn't do this," he warned himself, but the fifteen-year-old couldn't stop himself as he reached up and grabbed a black, skinny bottle of wine.  It was open, so it wasn't much of a struggle for Brock to pull the cork out from the bottle's neck.  With a loud pop, the cork flew out, and Brock reached up for one of the hanging, crystal-clear glasses.  He felt his conscience warning him not to do it, but nevertheless he poured a small splash of the red wine into the glass.  He stopped, and a moment later, finished filling the glass to the brim.

            Brock closed the bottle back up again, and took his glass of wine to the counter.  The song on the jukebox changed, and now Brock found himself listening to a tune he'd never heard before.  He liked it though, and settled onto the barstool.  He took one small sip from the glass, and smiled as the wine went down his throat.  It tasted so good.

            Brock kept his eyes closed, his sleepiness catching up to him.  As soon as he would finish his wine, he'd shut the jukebox off and go back to bed.  Hopefully Ash and Misty were still asleep and not aware that he was gone.  He didn't want them to come looking for him and discover his drinking.  That would not be too good.  He had always tried to set a good example for them.  

            Opening his eyes, he looked up into the mirror above the bar and gasped.  Behind him stood a large group of people, all staring back at him.  His heart pounding, he flipped around on his barstool in a flash.  Nothing was there.  Still panting, his panicky eyes darted the room.  There was nothing there.  He looked back into the mirror.  All he could see where tables and the back wall.  No other people were there.

            Brock laughed at himself and buried his head into his hands.  "I GOT to get some sleep," he said out loud, rubbing his temples. "Stupid eyes are playing tricks on me now."  His head and eyes were beginning to ache now from sleeplessness.  Brock grabbed for his wine glass, which was still pretty much full.  In one large gulp, he consumed the rest of the glass.

            He lifted himself off the stool, and turned to leave.  Suddenly, he stopped dead in his tracks.  His eyes widened and his body tensed up.  On the barstool beside his was the scrapbook, the same scrapbook that Brock had found in the cellar.  

            "How'd you get up here?" Brock asked out loud, carefully picking up the book.  "Thought I left you downstairs."

            Lifting the book to his face, a small sheet of paper fell out. Brock watched it fall softly to the floor, then bent down to retrieve it.  Bringing it close to his face, he read it, his heart pounding faster every second.

            Brock: A horrible mistake has been made.  We all know that you should be the rightful owner of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  We have also noticed the interest you've taken to this wonderful resort. It can be yours, too, you know.  It would really be a quite simple transaction.  You deserve it more than your friend, that's a fact we're all aware of.  But Ash won't let you have it.  Unknown to you, he has already signed the deed.  He wants this hotel, but not as bad as you.  The Fireside's Warmth deserves the very best, and that is you.  

            The note dropped out of Brock's shaking hand.  When the hell had Ash signed the deed? But then. . .who wrote that letter?! Brock closed his eyes again as his head began to throb once again.  He silently began to head for the door.

            "Brock."

            Brock froze in place.  

            "Brock."

            The sound was coming from behind him. Holding his breath, he slowly turned around to find the most beautiful girl he had ever seen smiling at him from the entranceway to the dining room.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .  


	12. Brock's Realization

Disclaimer:  I don't own Pokémon or "The Shining."  All rights are reserved to their owners.  

Last time, Ash, Misty, and Brock settled into the third and hopefully last night at the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.  Brock was awakened during the night, and discovered something quite frightening: the hotel wants HIM.

Summary:  Taking hold of his mind and actions, the hotel convinces Brock that he should be the owner of the hotel. . .and Ash and Misty must go.

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 12:

Brock's Realization

            Almost immediately, Brock's jaw dropped to the ground and his eyes bugged out.  The woman leaned against the frame of the door, and smiled the most gorgeous smile Brock had ever seen.

            "Who are you?" Brock asked dreamily, his tongue hanging out of his mouth and blushing a deep red.  "You're beautiful!"

            The woman walked over to Brock and held out her hand.  She had long blonde hair, and she was a couple inches taller than Brock.  She wore a flowing, white evening gown that dragged a bit on the floor.  Brock realized it was silk as he grabbed the woman's hands and it brushed across his skin.  

            "I've never seen someone so pretty in my life!" he told her.  She just smiled down at him.  "So, what's your name?"

            "Come dance with me, Brock," she said soothingly, gripping on lightly to Brock's hands.  She began to lead him out of the bar and towards the dining room.            Brock grinned.  "Well, that's a weird name, but sure!  I'll dance with you!  I'll dance forever with you!"

            The woman's gown flowed gracefully as she walked, and Brock tagged behind in a romantic trance.  Upon reaching the dining room doors, the music playing on the jukebox suddenly got louder, and appeared to be coming from behind the dining room's closed doors.  The woman pushed the huge, swinging doors open, and Brock found himself standing amidst a huge dinner party.  His eyes widened as hundreds of fancy dressed couples danced happily and romantically on the large dancing floor, while others sat at the tables, which were no longer stacked up in the corner, but scattered around geometrically.  An immense buffet table was now set up in the corner.  The three big chandeliers were lit up brightly and glimmered brilliantly.  And an enormous big band was blasting away on its instruments, playing the same song the jukebox had left off on.

            The woman smiled seductively and led Brock onto the dance floor.  Brock looked around strangely at all the people, who smiled at him as he passed them as if they knew him.  He closed his eyes as tightly as he could, then opened them again.  It was all still there, and just as active.  

            "I must be dreaming," Brock said nervously, sweatdropping.  "That's it--I'm dreaming.  Might be that wine, too.  They DO say that kids who drink need less alcohol to get disoriented. . ."

            "Shhhhh," the woman said softly, and brought her finger up to Brock's lips.  She locked her arms around him as did he, and they began to dance slowly to the music.  Brock's eyes met the beautiful girl's, and he smiled and blushed even more.  Whether he was out of it or not, he was enjoying this.  He laughed.

            "I feel kinda out of place," he said to the woman, who was smiling happily as she gazed at him.  "You know, all these fancy dressed people and me in my street clothes."

            "I think you look wonderful," she replied.  The song changed, and even though they were dancing slowly, they slowed down even more to match the pace.  The whole time the woman gazed dreamily into Brock's eyes.  

            Brock was going crazy.  Here was a beautiful woman, and she liked him!  But was it real? Brock shook his head insanely.  He didn't care.

            "So, do you like it here at the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, Brock?" the woman asked.  "We like it here.  See how much fun we're having?"

            "Yeah!" Brock answered.  "The hotel's great."

            The woman looked down at her feet.  "It's a shame Mr. Vrenden gave it to your friend.  I bet you're a way better Pokémon trainer than he is.  You deserved it more."

            Brock shrugged, running his hand up and down her smooth side. "Well, we--we didn't know that that's what he was battling for."

            "But still, you should be battling also," she said disappointedly.  "All your skills going to waste."

            Brock looked at her weirdly.  "How do you know what skills I have?"

            The woman lifted her hand up to Brock's face and stroked it soothingly.  "Someone as handsome as yourself has to be successful trainer.  Am I wrong?"

            Brock got hotter as her hand brushed against his skin.  "No! No, you're not wrong," he said, basking in the enjoyable moment.  "I. . .I am a GYM-LEADER after all."

            The woman smiled in surprise.  "Is that so?!  That's so impressive!  Tell me more things about yourself Brock." She leaned her head against his chest even though she was taller.  Brock's heart took a leap of joy.

            Brock laughed nervously.  "Well, I don't know.  What do you want to know?"

            The woman looked up at him.  He became totally absorbed in her gorgeous blue eyes and pearly white smile.  "Do you have a girl, Brock?  Being so cute, I'd assume you do."

            Brock grinned.  "Well, actually no. . ."

            "What about your friend there?" she asked him seriously.

            "Who?" 

            "That girl that you spend all your time with," the woman answered.  "I believe her name is Misty.  Do you have thing with her?" As soon as she finished her sentence, she pulled Brock's face up to hers, planting a romantic, indulging kiss on his lips.  Brock instantly connected fully to the kiss, and it lasted for a few seconds.   It sent stimulating sparks up Brock's spine, and his heart began to beat faster.

            The kiss finally broke off, leaving Brock in a love stupor.  If his tongue could touch the floor, it would have.  "No!  No!  I--I. . .no, I don't have a thing with her.  You're the one I want to be with!  Nobody else!"

            "Good," she answered proudly.  Then she began to look sad.  "It's a shame, though."

            Brock looked at her in shock.  "Whaddah mean?"

            "Well, of how nasty she's been to you in the past.  Almost like she's had it out for you since the beginning."

            "No, that couldn't be possible," Brock answered immediately.  "I mean, Misty's my friend! I don't think she'd--"

            "She's always pulling you away from other girls," the woman continued energetically.  "Quite forcefully, I believe."

            Brock stood speechlessly. 

            "Just think of all the dates and girlfriends you could have had if it weren't for her!" the woman nearly shouted.  They continued to dance all the same.  "Just think of how many times she's ruined what would have been perfect moments!"

            "Yeah, but--"

            The woman leaned over and kissed Brock once again.  This time, the kiss lasted a good whole minute.  Brock closed his eyes and engulfed himself totally in it.  It was the most romantic and wonderful thing he had ever felt in his life.  Suddenly, the woman gently lifted her lips off of his, and looked seriously but lovingly into his face.  

            "You don't need her," she said simply but almost sternly.  

            Brock nodded, his heart pumping, his body revved up.

            The look of sadness swept over her face once again.  "You poor guy.  All those girl troubles of yours."  

            Brock looked down morosely, but the woman brought his head back up to hers.  She smiled mischievously.

            "Have another drink, Brock," she said.  She pointed towards the bar.  "You deserve one."

            Brock smiled innocently.  "I really shouldn't."

            She giggled.  "No, go ahead!  I won't tell anyone!" she said with a wink. 

            She pushed him playfully off the dance floor.  "Go on, Brock.  You know you want to.  Don't worry, I'll be right here when you come back.  Promise."

            Brock looked at her and nodded.  He turned, the music of the big band blasting away.  The couples were still dancing joyfully, and as Brock began to walk out of the dining room, he glanced into the mirrored reflections of the party.  He gasped loudly when he noticed his girl behind him.  Her clothes were ragged, torn, and eaten, and she smiled a hideously tooth-less smile.  Her once beautiful face was now green and rotted as well, her hair almost completely gone.  Brock's heart skipped a beat and his breathing froze.  Quickly, he turned on his heels around to her.

            She stood there, still smiling back at him.  She was normal now, her beautiful young face and body as he had left them.  Brock closed his eyes and shook his head furiously. Now his eyes were playing tricks on him even in his fantasies!  The headache that plagued him wasn't going away, either.  

            Brock pushed open the doors that led to the bar.  The bar was now filled with other guests, some drinking away and others busily chatting at the tables.  The jukebox was silent, overshadowed by the band.  A man stood behind the bar, and he smiled at Brock when he entered.  Surprisingly to Brock, he looked very much like Mr. Vrenden.

            Brock sat down at the bar, giving the bartender a weird, confused look.  Noticing this, the bartender smiled warmly at him.

            "Would you like a drink, sir?" he asked, holding up a bottle of something.

            Still looking at him strangely, Brock nodded.

            "Is there something wrong, sir?" the bartender asked, pouring a small amount of the liquor into a shot glass.  "You look flushed."

            Brock took the glass in his hands and smelled it.  It smelled all right to him, yet he did not take a sip.  "Are--are you related to Mr. Vrenden, the last owner?  You. . .look like him a little."

            The bartender grinned.  "I should.  I'm his great-grandfather.  I was one of the first owners of the Fireside's Warmth.  It's been family owned since my family opened it in 1911."

            Brock nodded.  "I know. . .the scrapbook."

            "Ah, yes. The scrapbook."  The bartender looked at Brock and nodded down to his drink.  "Take a sip, my boy."

            Shaking his head, Brock pushed the glass away.  "I shouldn't.  I'm underage."

            "But that didn't stop you before."

            "That's all I was going to have."

            The bartender pushed the glass back to Brock.  "Go on.  It won't hurt you.  Nobody'll know. . .or squeal, if that's what you're worried about."

            "That's not what I'm worried about," Brock replied coldly.  He narrowed his eyes to the bartender and paused.  "Am I really talking to you?"

            "Oh course you are, sir," the bartender answered sincerely.  He smiled.  "Anything's possible here."

            Brock smiled weirdly.  "Is that so?"

            The bartender smiled and motioned to the drink again.  Brock glanced down at it and grasped it in his hand.  He looked down into the glass and took a small sip. His face bunched up as the hot liquor coated his throat.  But he liked it, and took another sip.  

            "You know, sir, I'd like to tell you that I've noticed the interest you've taken in the hotel," the bartender began.  "I'm proud to have been a part of this hotel.  And I've been proud to see that the hotel has been passed down during the years to my descendants.  They all took care of it so well."

            Brock nodded, his eyes fixed to the glass, which was now empty.

            "It deeply upset me when my great-grandson gave it away to your friend there," he continued.  "Never in my life did I see such a horrible mistake being made."

            "What are you talking about?" Brock asked almost angrily.

            "Nothing offensive, sir," he replied.  "But leaving the grandest hotel  (in my opinion) to a ten-year-old boy is something I would have never approved."

            He suddenly pointed at Brock, which made Brock flinch back a bit.  The bartender looked seriously into Brock's eyes.  "But you, son. . .I've been watching you and from what I've seen I've realized that YOU should have been the rightful owner."

            "Why?"

            "Well, your friend. . .Ash, isn't it?  I believe that he may be too young to truly understand the hotel."

            "Understand it?" Brock asked.

            The bartender nodded.  "You understand it.  You've researched it.  Our history and whatnot.  They're too scared to accept  what the hotel really is."

            Brock sat quietly and listened to all of the bartender's words.  As he heard this, his face twisted into one of concern and interest.     

            "But that's always the way it is, isn't it?" the bartender asked.

            "What?" Brock asked, confused.

            "You never get a break, do you?  You're always on the outskirts of Ash's spotlight.  Am  I right?"

            Brock shrugged.  "It is HIS  journey that I'm on."

            "I'm not talking about his training," he said.  "He takes everything from you.  The attention from all the people you meet.  The credit for all the problems the three of you have solved TOGETHER.  How everything must REVOLVE around him somehow.  But you. . .no, you're always the FRIEND.  The tag-along.  Well, we don't think of you as one, Brock.  We see you as the next owner of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel."

            Brock looked directly into his eyes.  "What do I have to do?"

            "Do you want the hotel, Brock?  Would you like to own it?"

            Brock nodded.  "I've wanted to since I took the tour with Ash and Misty."

            "Well then, do what you have to do."

            "What's that?"

            "Get rid of them, Brock," the bartender said with added emphasis.  "You don't need them anymore.  Exterminate them, Brock.  Think of it. . .the hotel all to yourself. . .their Pokémon in your hands."

            Brock sat silently, his head still throbbing.  He didn't know what to say, but the bartender's words rang in his head, and seemed to hang above him like a cloud.  He did have a point.  Suddenly, his eyesight became hazy and his body felt light.  Shutting his eyes, Brock let himself drift away, and his world became black.

TO BE CONTINUED. . . 


	13. The Morning After

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or "The Shining." All rights reserved!  I'm just doing this for fun!

Last time, Brock had his experience in the hotel, but not like Ash or Misty's.  With the feeling of being the worthless "tag-along" of the group, Brock is caught in the conflict of whether or not he REALLY wanted the hotel.

Summary:  The next morning, Brock is nowhere to be found.  This makes Ash and Misty all the more worried. . .

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 13:

The Morning After

            A sharp glare of light hit Misty directly in the eye.  Everything was silent except for the quiet tick-tock of the alarm clock beside the bed.  Beside her slept Ash, with Pikachu bundled tightly in his arms.  Misty looked out the window, seeing the bright sun shining between the branches of the trees. Suddenly she felt an emptiness behind her.  Why wasn't she feeling the warmth from Brock's body that she had felt before falling asleep?  She flipped over in a flash to reveal that Brock was not there.  Instead were his pushed aside sheets and indented pillow.

            "Brock?" she asked silently, hoping that he was in the next room.  There was no answer.  She pulled her feet out from underneath the blanket and sauntered into the living room.  The room was empty and quiet.  A chill ran down her back, and she immediately ran back to the bed.

            She gave Ash a hearty shove.  "Ash! Ash!  Wake up, Ash!"

            Ash groaned and turned over, his sleepy squinted eyes staring into her frightened face.  "What's the matter, Misty?"

            "Brock's gone!" Misty said in a panic, her voice shaking.  "He's not here!"

            Ash sat up and looked around the room.  Pikachu was up as well.  Rubbing his head, Ash got out of the bed and stretched.

            "Ash!  We have to find him!" Misty yelled.  

            "Calm down, Misty," Ash said.  "He's okay.  I'm sure he's just walking around the hotel somewhere."

            "Yeah, but I'm afraid something's happened to him!" she replied, her voice beginning to break.  Her eyes started to well up in tears.  "I don't know WHAT'S happening anymore!"

            Ash ran to her and placed his hands on her shoulders.  "Calm down!" he repeated.  "Let's go look for him.  Come on, Pikachu."

            "Pika!"

            Misty grabbed Togepi and her bathrobe, and they exited the caretaker's quarters.  The day was beautiful, but as they walked by the windows, Misty could tell that it was utterly cold out.  She could just sense it.  The hotel seemed much colder this morning than usual, also.  Misty figured that it was her fear causing that, and quickly focused her attention on finding Brock.

            "Brock!" Ash called out Brock's name as loudly as he could. He was still sleepy, but that was soon fading away.  Misty joined in on calling for Brock, but they were unsuccessful.

            Misty began to tremble.

            "Are you cold?" Ash asked her, concerned.

            "I'm scared, you imbecile!" she shouted. She controlled her anger immediately, and her voice dropped suddenly in a manner of worry.  "I'm sorry. Where is he?"

            Ash looked down.  "I don't know."

            Misty quickly turned to Ash, the fear nearly jumping out of her eyes.  "Oh my God, what if he left?  Or worse, what if he. . .if he. . ."

            "No, that can't be possible," Ash interrupted.  "Don't worry, we'll find him someplace."

            "Oh, I hope we do," Misty replied.

            "Togi," Togepi added sadly.  Misty gently rubbed her face against Togepi.  Togepi could feel Misty shaking, and it worried him greatly.

            Ash and Misty walked from room to room in the hotel.  They had not decided on any kind of search, but stuck to the first floor.  The checked the kitchen first, hoping that maybe Brock would be in there making breakfast.  But the kitchen was empty, and no food material had been taken out for the meal, and no dishes were in the sink or washing machine.  Brock had not been there.  They quickly made their way to the lobby, but Brock was not there, either.  Nor was he in the lounge.

            Ash was beginning to get incredibly nervous. He glanced over at Misty, and seeing the way she was, he decided not to show her his fear.  It would have probably made her more terrified.  Instead, he took a deep breath, and motioned Misty to follow her into the dining room.  What they saw then shocked them.

            All the tables, which had been neatly stacked in the corner the day before, were now all laid out in a circular manner around the room. Six chairs were placed around each of the tables, all pushed in. The layout of the tables left room in the center which Ash had assumed to be a dancing area.  Misty gaped at the room, her eyes bugging out of her head.  Turning to Ash, she saw that he was just as surprised as he was.

            "What happened here?" she asked in a high pitch voice.

            Ash shook his head in shock.  "I have no idea."

            Misty walked around the room slowly with Ash.  

            "You don't think. . ." Misty began, ". . .that Brock did this, do you?"

            Ash looked up at her.  "Why would he?"

            Misty shrugged.  "He must have, because I didn't and you. . .you didn't do it, did you?"

            "No, I didn't."

            "Well then. . ." Suddenly, Misty froze and shuddered as a chill ran up her spine.  Ash noticed this and he lightly touched her arm.  His eyes met hers, and he patiently awaited what Misty was about to say, though he didn't want to here it.

            "No," Misty concluded, stopping herself before she tried to scare both Ash and herself.  "Brock had to have done it.  But why?"

            "Misty," Ash said, looking sincerely into her face.  "Don't deny it anymore."

            Misty took a deep breath.  She gripped Togepi tightly.  

            Ash continued, although more slowly.  It was even difficult for him to talk about it.  "What. . . what if Brock. . .didn't do it?"

            Misty turned around swiftly and held one of her hands to her face.  "No, oh please no, not again."

            Ash grabbed hold of her arm.  She turned to him, her face suddenly pale.  "Don't worry.  As soon as we find Brock, we're out of here."

            Misty nodded, and all of a sudden a look of determination came to her face.  "You're right.  The quicker we find Brock, the quicker we can get out of this goddam place."

            Ash's eyes rose.  He couldn't believe how quickly Misty's temperament could be changed.  The two kids took another frightened look around the room in disbelief.

            "Pika pi! Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted suddenly.  Ash and Misty's heads shot up instantaneously.

            "Pikachu?  Where are you?" Ash asked, starting to get jumpy.  He and Misty walked in circles trying to locate Pikachu.

            "Pika!  Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted again.

            Ash turned towards the bar.   "In there!" he proclaimed, pointing in the direction of the bar.

            He and Misty sprinted into the bar, and Ash spotted Pikachu sitting on the counter.

            "Pika chu pi!" Pikachu yelled, pointing down behind the bar.  Ash and Misty immediately ran over there, and gasped.

            "Brock!" Ash hollered, bending down to him. 

            Brock was sprawled out on the floor behind the bar.  His head rested in both his arms, and his legs were tangled around each other behind him.  Misty bent down along with Ash, and two began to shove him.

            "Brock, wake up!" Ash said again.  He started to slap Brock's face gently.

            "Brock!" Misty shouted.  She reached out and started to nudge his body forcefully.  "Come on, Brock!"

            After shoving himself for a good minute, Ash and Misty's arms fell limp.  Brock was still asleep, breathing heavily and rhthymically.

            "Oh, no! He's out cold!" Misty said worriedly.

            "Poor guy," said Ash, placing a hand on Brock's shoulder.  

            Misty nodded sadly.  "He was probably up all night looking out for us.  But why is he in here?"

            Ash stood up.  "Don't know.  But we have to get Brock to the bedroom.  We can't leave him here."

             "Right," Misty agreed, still crouched on the floor.  "But we can't carry him there.  And we can't drag him either."

            Ash smiled.  "No problem!" He started out back to the room.  "I'll be right back!  Hold on."

            Misty waited for Ash.  She was close to tears as she looked down at Brock.  She reached out and began to stroke his hair.  He looked exhausted and pale, too.  "He really cares about us," she thought happily.

            Ash finally came back in.  In his hand he held a Pokéball.  "This ought to do it," she said proudly and determinedly.  "Charizard! I choose you!"

            Charizard appeared instantly, looking attentively at Ash.  His huge tail swished around energetically, and hit a tower of glasses, sending them shattering to the ground.

            "Charizard!  Watch out!" Ash shouted.

            Charizard growled softly and looked back at the mess.  Ash shook his head.  "Charizard, we need you to help us get Brock back to the room."

            Charizard nodded, and picked Brock up in his strong arms.  Ash and Misty walked slowly back to the room, with Charizard right behind.  Every once in a while, Ash or Misty would glance back worriedly at their friend.  Brock was still not stirring, and it didn't appear that he was going to soon.

            "You don't think he's sick, do you?" Misty asked.

            Ash shrugged.  "I don't know.  We'll find out when we get there."

            They reached the room, and Charizard carefully placed Brock on the unmade bed.  Ash thanked Charizard and recalled him back into the Pokéball.  In the meantime, Misty had grabbed the big throw blanket and threw it over Brock, pulling it closely to his face.  She felt his forehead, which was not hot.  

            "I don't think he's sick," she announced softly.  "But he's conked out."

            "Let's let him rest, then," replied Ash.  "Come on, let's get something to eat."

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Ash and Misty entered the kitchen, and telling Misty to sit down, Ash went to get some milk.  He poured two heaping glasses of it, and handed one to Misty, who quaffed it down in nearly two gulps.  

            "Want some oatmeal?" Ash asked with a smile, hoping to bring one to Misty's face.  

            She did smile, and nodded.  

            Ash grabbed the oatmeal out of the cupboard and began to boil water.  As he cooked it, Misty sat quietly feeding Togepi Pokémon food pieces one at a time.  Togepi squealed happily, and Misty smiled weakly.  All she could think about was Brock. The thought of the tables was on her mind, also.  Maybe Brock had gotten bored while he was up, or something.

            Ash finished pouring the oatmeal into the bowls and handed one to Misty.  He sat down beside her at the counter.  She began to eat very slowly, and Ash watched her as he ate.  She looked pale and wan to him, and he found it disturbing.  

            "We made a mistake coming here," he said suddenly, breaking the uncomfortable silence between them.  Misty looked up at him.

            Ash continued slowly.  "I. . .I should have thought about coming home sooner. . .you know, to beat this cold."

            Misty smiled weakly.  "Ash, don't blame yourself.  It's not your fault.  We all decided to stay here."

            "Yeah, but I had to be the idiot and challenge that stupid gym-leader for a badge!" Ash shouted, his voice beginning to crack.  "It is my fault!"

            "Ash, stop it!" Misty replied angrily.  "I'm not gonna let you blame yourself for all of this!"

            Ash didn't say anything.  He stared down at his oatmeal, picking it up and dumping it out with his spoon.  Misty looked worriedly at him, hoping that she did not hurt his feelings in any way.  

            "Ash. . ." Misty began, ready to apologize for shouting.

            "I want to go home!" Ash shouted all of a sudden, nearly knocking Misty out of her chair.  He looked up at her and she noticed that his eyes were filling up with tears.  "I want to go home, now!  I don't ever want to see this place again!  I hate it!"

            Ash buried his hands in his face.  Misty didn't hear him crying, but she assumed that he was.  She quickly got out of her chair and put her arm around him.  They sat quietly like that for about five minutes when suddenly Ash lifted his face out of his hands.  Misty looked down at him.  He had not been crying.

            "This is stupid," Ash muttered.  "We're wasting time."

            "Right," Misty replied, gathering the dirty dishes.  She clumsily dropped them in the sink and waved them away with her hand.  "I'll start packing up our things."

            She began to leave and Ash halted her.  "Wait.  Don't go alone.  We shouldn't be apart in case something else decides to happen."

            Misty nodded, and Ash joined her.  

            "Maybe Brock's getting up now," Misty said with a spark of hope in her voice.   

            "Let's hope," Ash agreed, shaking his head.

             Little did they know, in one of the pantries lay Team Rocket.  Asleep, that was, except for James.  Ash and Misty's talking had awoken him, and he had lay silently listening. After hearing them leave, he budged just a little.  He was lifting himself up on his elbows, and quickly scanned the area.  Sure enough, Jessie and Meowth were both asleep next to him. They had settled for the night on large bags of flour that they had found in the pantry where they had ended up.  The welcoming warmth of the hotel had made them incredibly tired yet comfortable, and now that their bellies were full, they had to concentrate on something much more important--getting Pikachu.

            "Hey, wake up," he said gently, nudging his partners.

            Jessie groaned and sat up, rubbing her eyes.  Meowth just stretched out and settled back into his sleeping position, but with his eyes slightly open and alert.

            "It's morning," Jessie said tiredly, running a hand through her hair.  

            "So, what's next?" Meowth asked.

            "I just heard those kids talking now," James said, standing up and stretching.

            "What were they talking about?" Jessie asked.

            "They're leaving," James replied. "I think today."

            "Leaving?" Jessie exclaimed.  "But they can't!  We haven't even executed our plan yet!"

            Meowth got up now as well.  "Well, we dilly-dallied enough!  What were ya waiting for?"

            Jessie growled.  "Shut up!  My body was too frozen to do a thing!"  She turned back to James.  "Is that all?"

            "I don't know," James said, looking puzzled.  "I don't think that big twerp was with them.  And Ash seemed kind of upset.  The girl, too."

            Jessie sighed.  "Well, maybe they can stick around long enough for us to attack.  But we should do it soon."

            James shrugged.  "Well, why not now?"

            Jessie smiled embarrassingly.  "I have to go to the bathroom really bad!"

            James and Meowth practically face-faulted, but agreed to get that out of the way first by all means.

            "Soon, Pikachu. . .you'll be ours!" Meowth smirked mischievously.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .


	14. All Work and No Play Makes Brock a Dull ...

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon or "The Shining."

Last time, Ash and Misty find Brock unconscious in the bar.  They decide that they'll waste no time in leaving.

Summary:  Ash, Misty, and Brock's visit has taken a horrible turn for the worse.  

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 14:

All Work and No Play Makes Brock a Dull Boy

            "So, what's your big plan?" Meowth asked, lowering his eyes to Jessie.

            Team Rocket still sat in the pantry.  An open box of crackers stood in the center of their circle, with their hands occasionally stuffed into it.

            Jessie laughed proudly. "I think it's the best one yet.  See, we'll use the hotel to aid us along.  While those twerps are too busy packing away their stuff like James claims they are--"

            "Are you assuming that I'm making that up?" James asked, annoyed.

            "No," Jessie replied, looking at him strangely.  "Anyway, while they're busy doin' that, we'll snatch Pikachu and silently make a run for it."

            "But won' t they notice that it's missing?" James asked, getting interested in the plan.  As soon as he heard the word "snatching," his eyes lit up.

            "Of course not!" Jessie replied, shrugging happily.  "They'll think it's roaming around the hotel somewhere. Pokémon are naturally very curious of new surroundings.  Sometimes they even get lost." She winked at her two partners, who smiled from ear to ear.

            "That's great, Jessie!" James exclaimed.  "When do we attack?"

            "Soon," answered Jessie in an evil voice.  "Very soon."

            "But what if they're leaving before we get a chance to attack?" Meowth asked.

            "Yeah, and if they're leaving, wouldn't they come in here to get some food?" James pointed out.

            Jessie and Meowth suddenly cringed in fear.  They knew he was right.  Opening the door a crack, Meowth surveyed the area.  Quickly, they scurried out, heading to a door, not yet knowing where it led.

            "Where are you going?" Jessie demanded in fear.

            "Beats me!" Meowth replied, and they blasted through the door to the dining room.

            "It's too open here!" James said.  "If they come in here, they'll spot us!"

            Jessie looked around.  She spotted another door.  "Over there!" she shouted, and they finally ended up in the bar, in which they hid for cover behind.

            "Now we just wait," Jessie said, and James and Meowth sighed heavily.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Ash and Misty made their way slowly back to the caretaker's quarters.  They talked occasionally, but only of what they had scattered around the hotel that they had to collect.  Ash glanced outside the window, and smiled suddenly.  The bright blue sky that had existed not an hour ago was now filled with clouds, and the first snowfall of the year had begun.  Ash nudged Misty softly and motioned her to look outside.  Misty smiled slightly but it didn't cheer her up as much as it did Ash.

            Finally entering the quarters, Misty walked immediately to the bed.  Brock was still sound asleep, breathing heavily.

            "Let's let him keep resting," Ash said.  "We can pack up most of our things and his, too.  Don't worry, he'll wake up soon."

            Misty nodded, and started to pick up some of the clothes she had folded around the quarters. She walked into the bathroom and took down all of their shampoo and soap, grabbing a few of the hotel's while she was at it.  She threw the things into her bag (she usually carried the toiletries), and made her way to the small bedroom where she had spent the first night.  Most of her stuff she had left in there.  Suddenly, she put her hands on her hips and stared at the pile.  "Where's my--oh, no!" she thought, mumbling out loud.

            "Ash!" she called.  

            "What?" he replied from the living room.  He had been in the master bedroom packing his bag and a little of Brock's.

            Misty came into the room looking quite upset.  Ash immediately asked what was the matter.

            "I left one of my shirts in the honeymoon suite!" she whined.  "Please go get it for me."

            "But Misty, I--"

            "Ash, I don't want to go up there!" Misty crooned, giving Ash what appeared to be puppy-dog eyes.  "Please go get it?"

            Ash laughed.  "And you think I want to?"

            "Asssshhhhh. . ."

            Ash threw his hands to his ears.  "Fine, I'll get it!  I'll get it!  Just. . .finish up here all right?"

            Misty smiled and nodded.  "Thank you!"

            "Come on, Pikachu," Ash said, motioning to his pal.  "Come with me."

            Pikachu jumped off the bed and followed Ash out of the room.  Relieved that she didn't have to be in that horrible room again, Misty sighed, and decided to check the food supply. When she noticed that they were running low, she picked up Togepi and headed to the kitchen to get food for the road.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

             Meanwhile, Team Rocket sat patiently behind the bar.

            "Where are those kids?" Jessie asked, impatiently tapping her foot.  "I'm getting really annoyed!"

            "Calm down, Jess," James replied.  "They'll come around soon."

            Meowth had been crouching down low along with them, but decided to walk around a bit.  Hiding low, he began to scrutinize the bar, checking the place out.  He was amazed at how beautiful the hotel was in the inside compared to its ghastly appearance on the outside.  Feeling too much out in the open, he returned to Jessie and James, but the opposite way.  He had made a complete trip around the bar room.

            Suddenly, he stubbed his toe on something.

            "Meeooowth!" he screamed, and Jessie immediately clasped a hand on his mouth.

            "Are you insane?!" she demanded furiously.

            Meowth gripped his foot with tears in his eyes.  "I hit my foot on sometin!"

            Jessie let go of him and Meowth quickly went to check out what it was.  "Huh?" he asked in shock when he discovered what he had hit.

            "What is it?" James asked, as he and Jessie leaned over Meowth's shoulder to see what it was.

            Meowth turned around slowly with an empty bottle of whiskey in his hands.  Jessie and James' eyes bugged out when they saw it, matching Meowth's shocked expression.

            "Have those little twerps been _drinking_?" Jessie shrieked in disbelief, grabbing the bottle out of Meowth's paws.

            "Looks that way," James replied.

            Jessie slammed the bottle down hard.  "How disgusting!  I didn't have my first drink till I was sixteen!"

            Meowth was grinning and grabbed the bottle once again.  "Hey, if this plan doesn't work, we could hold on to it, and use it as blackmail for another time!  Maybe that twerp would give us his Pikachu if we threaten ta show this to his mudah!"

            Jessie and James moaned.  "Let's hope it won't come to that," Jessie said.  "Let's hope this plan works."

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Ash shook in fear as he made his way up the stairs to the second floor.  Pikachu sat quietly on his head, ready to shock if anything got in their way.  The Pokémon was now even beginning to feel weird vibes at certain times, and was ready to protect Ash if it had come to that.

            Holding the suite key firmly in his hand, Ash walked slowly and cautiously to the door.  He remembered Misty's horror story about that night, and a shudder ran up his spine.  Nothing was impossible now at the Fireside's Warmth Hotel.

            The two finally reached the door, and Ash slowly slipped the key into the lock.  He remembered the last time he had heard that sound of a lock opening, and that had ended in disaster.  He held his breath, and swung the door open.  Huge windows displayed the immaculate winter wonderland that was accumulating outside, and Ash smiled again.  The snow seemed to be helping him along. The room was quiet, and Ash was relieved.  For now.

            "Come on, Pikachu.  Let's find Misty's things and leave."

            As soon as he started toward the bedroom, the door suddenly slammed shut behind him with a loud bang.  Ash trembled, and turned around immediately.  Like a bolt of lightning, he ran to the door and grabbed hold of the doorknob tightly.  He tried to turn it, but it would not budge.  Pikachu's heart began to race as he silently tried to will the door to open.  But there was no luck.

            "Oh no!" Ash cried as he began to bang loudly on the door.  "Somebody help!  Misty!  Brock!  Anybody, I can't get out!"

            "Pika!!" Pikachu joined in.

            Ash tried to pry the door open again, but it was sealed shut.  Ash broke into a cold sweat and his head began to throb as he nervously and desperately tried to free himself.

_____________________________________________________________________________________  

            After spending about ten or less minutes in the kitchen, Misty returned to the quarters, her arms full of bread and canned foods.  Togepi toddled along quietly behind her.  She was surprised that Ash had not yet returned, but she assumed that he was still getting her things.

            She made her way immediately to the bedroom to see if Brock was awake.  If not, hopefully he would be waking soon.  Entering the bedroom, she froze, dropping the food onto the bed.  Brock was not there.  She quickly turned around in all directions to find where he was.  He was not in the bedroom, and Misty walked into the living room.

            "Brock?" she asked nervously.  "Brock? Where are you?"  

            "Right here, Misty," Brock said softly from behind her. 

            Misty spun around to reveal Brock standing behind her. She had no idea from where he had popped out from.  He had a huge grin on his face, and Misty's eyes fell instantly to the roque mallet that he held in his hands.  Looking back up into his eyes, she began to smile.

            "Thank God," she said in pure relief, holding her hand to her heart. "You scared me."

            Still smiling, Brock shrugged.  "Sorry," he said.

            "I'm so glad that you're up," Misty continued, starting to feel a little nervous.  Brock stood there with the same expression on his face, yet it was blank.  "What happened to you? Why did you leave the room last night?"

            Brock shrugged again, and came nearer to her, twirling the mallet around in his hands.  Misty watched it nervously, but still tried to force a smile.  She nodded down at it.

            "What's with the mallet?" she asked, beginning to shake.

            "What, this?" Brock asked, bringing the mallet close to his face.  He drew even nearer to Misty, but now she had begun to back up.  He looked up at her as an evil grin spread across his face.  "You want to _find_ out, Misty?"  He lowered the mallet back down to the ground, but held it as if he was ready to hit a ball.

            Misty swallowed heavily, backing up slowly.  "What are you talking about, Brock?" she asked softly as she managed a small smile.

            "I want to play a little game with you, Misty," Brock said happily.  "It's called hide-and-seek."

            Misty laughed nervously.  "Come on, Brock, joke's over.  Help me pack up."

            "Why?  We're not going anywhere," Brock replied, shrugging. He held the mallet firmly in his hands.  

            Misty turned to him surprisingly.  "Yes, we are!  We talked about it last night."

            "Ah, yeah, last night!" Brock said, looking at the ceiling in happiness.  He looked back at her.  "A lot happened last night."

            Misty stared at him strangely.  "What?!  Brock, stop playing around! This isn't funny!"

            All of a sudden, Brock began to laugh, and Misty watched in fear as Brock's smile twisted into one of evil happiness.  The mallet that was draped casually at his side was now brought up to his face.  He looked admiringly at it, and then looked at Misty.  The glare in his eyes sent shivers up Misty's spine, and suddenly she realized that something was terribly, terribly wrong.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            "Somebody please let me out!" Ash bellowed through the closed door.  He gripped the knob with all his might and yanked at it. He placed his foot on the wall and tried once again.  No luck.  His breathing had become heavy, sounding almost as if he had asthma.  The sweat poured down his forehead and back in buckets.  In frustration, he kicked the door angrily.  "Oh God! Can't anybody here me!?  Damn it!"

            "Ash honey, quiet down."

            Ash screamed and flipped around.  His jaw dropped and he froze in shear horror.  Not five feet away from him stood "her."  Ash's heart began to pound uncontrollably.  It WAS her, the same thing he had seen in the bathtub yesterday.  Little did he know that she was also the same gorgeous woman that had danced with his friend the night before.  Only now she looked fresh from the grave, her greenish face grinning at Ash, her hair in impossible ratted tangles and falling out in numerous places, and wearing an eaten-through white dress, which Ash would have never known considering its current brownish color.

            Pikachu squealed in terror and jumped into Ash's arms.  Ash almost dropped Pikachu but gripped onto him for protection.

            Once again, she smiled at him, a warm, loving smile.  But that was the last feeling that came to Ash. He could only feel evil radiating from it. Finding himself now in the presence of a real ghost, he tried to scream again, but no sound came out of his throat.  Instead, he was gasping loudly, trying desperately to find the strength to do so.

            "Don't be afraid of me, Ash.  I've been waiting for you."  Her eyes suddenly grew white and clouded, and she reached her rotted hand out to Ash.  Ash immediately backed away, his eyes glued with fear at the horrid apparition before him. He realized that she didn't look alive or dead, but from some appalling stage in between. The scream that had bundled itself up within him finally emerged.  Being the loudest scream Ash had ever released in his life, it almost deafened poor Pikachu.  But it had no impact whatsoever on her and she continued to walk gracefully towards Ash.

            "Come on, Ash.  Come with me.  You'll be happier."

            The whole time, Ash was not even aware that he was backing away from the door, his only way out.  His eyes were fixated on her, almost as if she was a magnet attracting them to her.  It was the most ghastly sight he had ever seen, worse than ones from movies, worse than ones from his nightmares.  For a second or so, he felt like he was going to faint.  Miraculously, though, he did not.  Despite the fear that was gathering in him like a bucket in a torrential downpour, he made a desperate attempt for the door.  

            He got no further than a few feet when suddenly to his horror, she caught him in her deadly grip. The impact caused Ash to drop Pikachu, who landed between Ash and her. The boy tried to scream but was abruptly and horribly halted as she clasped her greasy, rotted hands around his neck, and with a happy but nevertheless evil smile, began to take Ash's life.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .    


	15. The Battle -- Minus the Pokémon

Disclaimer:  I do not own Pokémon or "The Shining."  

Last time, the tension rose as Brock began to pursue Misty mysteriously with a roque mallet, and Ash had yet another horrible encounter in one of the hotel's evil rooms.

Summary:  Brock is out of his mind.  After convinced by the hotel to get rid of his friends in a dreadful, quick manner, Misty and Ash find themselves trapped and in a fight for their lives.

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 15:

The Battle--Minus the Pokémon

            Ash's eyes rolled back into the top of his head.  His hands gripped with the little strength they had left around the hands of his ghostly murderer, and his tongue began to drop out of his mouth.  Pikachu watched in horror as his trainer and friend gasped for the precious air that was being grimly taken from him.  All that was coming out of  Ash were sickening moans.  The Pokémon eyes then flipped over to "her," the thing responsible for bringing Ash pain.  With terror but nonetheless anger building inside of him, he let off  the most tremendous and electrifying shock his body could produce.   Streaks of lightning bolted off into every corner of the room, but most importantly, hitting its ultimate target.  As if a horrible "ghost repellent" was sprayed upon it, the ghost disappeared, along with the hands that had no doubt been killing Ash.

            Ash fell to the floor immediately.  He brought his hands up to his neck in a flash, and began to take huge, desperate gasps of air.  Pikachu rushed to his side instantly.  Looking up into his face, Pikachu could see that Ash's lips had turned to a lighter shade of blue, his eyes were clenched shut, and his forehead was a bright red.  

            "Pika pi?" Pikachu asked, tears coming to his eyes.

            Ash opened one eye and looked down at his friend, and suddenly smiled slightly.  "Thhhanks Pikachuuu. . ." he said coarsely between gasps for air.  As soon as he said that, he closed his eyes again and began to cry, his hands still rubbing his bruised neck to get the blood circulating again.  "Oh my God, we have. . . to get out of. . . here.  Got. . .to get . . . Misty. . .Brock."

            He tried to get up, but fell down right away.  Still breathing soundly and precariously, he rested his head down on the carpet.  

            "Pika pi!  Chu pi pikachu pika," said Pikachu.

            "I'm. . .trying," Ash managed to say.  "I. . .can't breathe. Help me. . ." 

            Pikachu looked behind his back at the closed door.  For some reason, he felt that it was open now. Tugging tightly on Ash's shirt, he told Ash of what he thought.  Using every ounce of energy he had left in him, Ash rose to his feet.  Wobbling a bit and still holding onto his neck, he reached out and turned the doorknob.  The door opened freely and easily, and Ash and Pikachu ran away from the room as full speed towards the staircase.  It was only then that Ash began to wail, which came out only as muffled, terrified moans.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Misty backed up more and more as Brock approached her.  He was laughing softly now, and his eyes were opened wide. A recognizable look of vice had taken over his expression.  He grasped the mallet firmly in his hands and raised it.  Misty froze in terror.

            "What's wrong with you!?" she screamed frightfully.

            "YOU are what's wrong with me, you little wench!" Brock bellowed suddenly, making Misty shiver.  She looked at him with panic filled eyes.

            "What?!" she choked out.  She let out a small cry of shock as her back hit the wall, a dead end.  She gazed into the eyes of her friend, who now stood before her, giving her the most horrible looks of loathing and evilness  she'd ever seen in her life.  Her heart was pounding, and she realized that something  terribly wrong was occurring.  She had never felt a stronger feeling.  

            "Oh, don't play innocent with me, Misty," Brock uttered with a hint of warning in his voice.  "I knew from the beginning that you were out to make my life miserable."

            "Oh my God, what are you talking about?!" Misty yelled back, tears beginning to stream down her terrified face.  "Why would you think such a thing?!"

            Brock wiped his mouth with his hand.  He gripped the mallet so hard now that his hands and face were becoming red.  He gave her a disgusted look.  

            "You've done all you can to me, wench," he said.  "And I'm not gonna tolerate it anymore!"

            With that, Brock swung the mallet at Misty, missing her by mere inches.  Misty shrieked and almost fell after feeling the swift blast of air blow by her.   She quickly regained her balance and ran past Brock as fast as she could.  Brock brought the mallet back up again, and turned to watch her run out of the room.  He smiled evilly again, and calmly walked out after her, smashing the television on his way out.

            Misty didn't know why she looked back at Brock, but the shattering of glass from the TV had startled her.  She screamed as she saw Brock walked towards her.

            "You're crazy!" she belted out at him.  "What's gotten into you?!"

            She still kept her eyes peeled on him, watching his every move as she started to jog in a panic down the hallway.  

            "You have, Misty," Brock said almost too calmly.  "You and the twerp.  You've both pissed me off  way beyond repair this time."

            Misty breathed in heavy, uneven breaths.  Her throat felt like it was going to close any minute.  Her heart had not ceased to race.  In a flash, she turned around and began to run down the hall, not looking back.  She wasn't going to stand there and inquiry Brock about why he was suddenly coming after her with a murderous glint in his eye. 

            "Ash!!!!!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.  "Ash! Help!  Where are you?! Ash!"

            At the sound of Misty's unbearable pleas and screams for help, Ash froze suddenly.  A million thoughts passed through his mind at once.  All he could think about was the hotel, the woman who had been attempting to kill him, and the voices.  These all came together to produce one horrid vision in his mind, and that was Misty in danger.  Or worse, Misty hurt.  But she didn't sound hurt.  Only a second or two had passed while he was thinking this, and he started to run faster toward the staircase to help his friend.  

            Ash got only a few feet from the staircase when all of a sudden, a massive, angry Growlithe jumped out in front of him.  It seemed to appear out of nowhere, and Ash screamed as it came into sight, growling and bearing its teeth, it's eyes red with malice, the fur on it's back straight up.  What really appalled and sent Ash into shock was the white foam forming at the Growlithe's mouth, completely coating it's teeth and chin.  

            Backing into the wall, Ash suddenly replaced the look of fear on his face with that of mad determination.  "Pikachu!  Thundershock, now!!" he ordered, and without another second passed, Pikachu let loose his electricity.  But to Ash's horror, the voltage didn't even appear to leave a sting on the rabid dog.  It stood there just as rigid as it had been before, growling at him with intense hatred.  Below, Ash could still hear Misty's desperate cries, and they seemed to gnaw at his insides.  

            "I wish I could come, Misty," he muttered miserably out loud, staring dead on into the eyes of the Growlithe, who was patiently standing its ground, but hunching as if it was to pounce.  "Oh God, please help her.  Whatever's happening. . . Please help her!"

            On the first floor, Misty found herself approaching the base of the staircase.  "Ash!  Ash! Help meeeeee!!!" she screeched.  She looked behind her and saw Brock approaching, swinging the huge mallet casually around in large, swooping circles.

            "There you are!" he exclaimed, looking at her satisfyingly.  "Thought you could get away from ol' Brocko, didn't ya?"

            "Get away from me, you psychopath!" she shouted hatefully at him, and she turned to run again.  She wanted to cry, but somewhere in her was telling her to be strong.  It was too hard, though.  Brock was after her now, there was no doubt about that, and Ash was nowhere to be found.  

            "What if he . . . no!" Misty got that thought out of her head immediately.  "Ash couldn't be in trouble.  The hotel couldn't  have gotten him.  Not yet  . . . I -- I need him."

            Misty found herself in the lobby now, in front of the couch that the three of them had sat in when they first settled down in the Fireside's Warmth Hotel to defrost their frozen bodies.  Now she looked down at it, and if eyes could start fires, she would have set it on fire.  He hated it, she hated all of it.  

            "Hello, love," Brock said, entering the lobby.  "Been missing me?"

            Misty shuddered and gasped, but otherwise remained silent.  "Get away from me," she finally said as he came dangerously closer to her.  He looked like Brock, he sounded like Brock, but he was not Brock.  Brock was gone.  In his place now was the hotel in human form.  Brock's form.  "If you were really Brock, you wouldn't be doing this."

            Brock shrugged, the grin never escaping his face.  "It's me Misty! Only it's the new improved me!  The one who's not gonna be the tag-along sucker anymore.  And I'm not going to take crap from you or Ash anymore!"

            Misty suddenly burst into tears.  "You're not Brock!  You're not Brock!  Ash!  Ash!  Where are you!"

            Brock came nearer to her.  "Why did you do it, Misty, hmm?  Why so many times?"

            "What are you _talking _about?"

            "Why so many times did you ruin my chance with a girl?  Was it that you just hated me so much -- so much because you were jealous that Ash wasn't acting the same towards you? Well, I have news for ya, honey, he doesn't like you.  Why would anyone like _you_? Stupid little wench that you are.  All you ever do is complain.  Never shut up.  Always nagging me."  

            Misty continued to sob as Brock backed her into the couch.  Suddenly, his face started to almost illuminate in hatred, and Misty's eyes widened in fear.  She held out her arms.

            "Please. . . Brock . . . leave me alone!"

            Brock suddenly swung the mallet powerfully at Misty, striking her hard in her upper thigh.  Misty collapsed to the floor instantly and emitting a deafening howl in pain, gripping her leg.  She couldn't breathe as the pain shot through her body in all directions.  She rolled over onto her stomach and sobbed loudly.  

            Brock smiled down at the injured Misty.  "How do _you_ like getting hit with a mallet, Misty?" he asked slyly, referring to the many times Misty had conked him on the head for flirting with girls.  

            Misty didn't reply or even look at him.  All she could concentrate on was the flaming pain in her leg.  She pulled her hand back expecting to see blood, but there was none.   Brock was overly enjoying her agony, and craved even more to continue it, to finish the job.  Slowly, he lifted the mallet high above his head and prepared to bring it down hard onto her back.  Misty caught sight of the raised mallet and her heart took an immediate jump.

            "Nooo. . . ," she moaned, shutting her eyes and waiting for the impact.  

            "Prepare for trouble!"

            "And make it double!"

            Brock flipped around suddenly to all too familiar voices of their enemies, dropping the mallet back down at his side again.  Misty's eyes opened slightly to make out a blurred vision of two people standing in the lobby's entrance. 

            "To protect the world from devas--" Jessie froze suddenly in mid-line as soon as her eyes looked on at the scene before her.    James' eyes bugged out of his head and Meowth gaped along with her when they noticed Misty wailing on the floor with Brock standing over her with a mallet.  Misty had her hands clasped tightly around her leg.  Both kids were staring surprisingly at Team Rocket.

            "Wh--what's going on?" Jessie asked fearfully, looking horridly at Brock and then Misty.

            Brock grinning at the newcomers. Jessie, James, and Meowth gasped loudly at the sight of Brock's weapon, and putting two and two together did not take too much brains to realize what had just happened. This was no joke.

            "Hey Team Rocket!" Brock chimed happily, striding over swiftly to the threesome.  "Come to steal Pikachu?"

            With that, he swung the mallet forcefully at James, making contact with his right side.  Jessie screamed deafeningly and jumped out of the way to see her partner stumble around and holding his side.  He was groaning unbearably loud, and the sound of it and the sight of his pain-filled face made Jessie suddenly nauseous.  

            "Oh my God!" Jessie shrieked, looking down at James and then at Brock.

            James had fallen to the ground when the pain had become to intolerable.  He rested on his knees and his head lay on the ground.  Jessie could do nothing but stare horribly at the sight.  She was frozen in fear.  Brock looked down at his victim with the same satisfied look that he had displayed to Misty.  All of a sudden, James eyed him hatefully and made an attempt to get up.

            "Oh no you don't!" Brock said, and brought the mallet down hard on James' back.  Jessie screeched loudly again as the mallet made a hard, cracking sound as it struck James' back.  The poor boy fell down unconscious on the floor, and Brock turned to Jessie smiling.  Jessie's eyes were filled with undoubted fear as Brock smashed her in the shoulder.    Jessie fell to the ground beside her partner, moving just slightly.

            Misty stared at the scene before her with shock.  Her eyes moved over a bit to see that Meowth was standing a way off to the side, looking just as shocked as he did angry.  His glare jumped to Brock.

            "How dare you do that to my friends!" the cat yelled angrily.  He suddenly made a leap for Brock, his claws extended.  

            Brock caught Meowth before he could furry-swipe the boy's face, and held him out in front of him.  Meowth's expression turned to one of fear as Brock hurled him at the nearest wall.  Meowth struck it with a thud, and collapsed to the floor after losing consciousness.

            Misty screamed again as loud as she could.  Tears poured from her eyes like Niagara Falls. Where the hell was Ash?

            "ASH!!!!!!!" she shouted loudly, hurting her throat in the process.  "Please, where are you?!"

            "Oh, Ash, where are you? Where are you?" Brock laughed, imitating Misty's voice.  "Just cut it out, will ya?  Besides, as soon as I'm done with you, I'll hunt him down.  Nobody's getting away from me."  

            Misty said nothing, but sat crying looking down at Team Rocket, who laid limp, Meowth at the other side of the room, and Jessie and James one on top of each other, motionless.  Brock smiled.

            "Well, I guess I did us a favor. . . for a while," he said proudly.  "They won't bother us _ever_ again."

            "You're sick!" Misty wailed at him.  

            Brock shook his head.  "No, Misty.  I'm better now.  But first I think I'm gonna find out where Ashy Boy is.    Will ya wait for me, Misty?  I'll be back."

            He turned towards the staircase and made his way out of the room.  

            "No, Brock!  Don't!" Misty pleaded loudly, dragging herself a few feet.  "Please!  Ash, watch out!  He's coming!"

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            A floor above them, Ash continued to hear Misty's cries.  He had heard her scream every time, but he could not do anything about it.  A few times when he had tried to escape, the Growlithe would growl hatefully and warningly at him, and Ash would back away in fear.  Finally, Misty's cries for help were poison to his ears, and he realized that he needed to help her, even if it meant him getting hurt in the process.

            He jumped up, and immediately the Growlithe hurled itself at him, but not close enough.  Ash maneuvered himself around it, holding Pikachu firmly in his arms.  Suddenly, two more rabid Growlithe appeared from an hallway, and trapped him in a triangle.  Surrounded and feeling defeated, Ash fell to his knees, eyeing the three Growlithe around him.  He knew he had to do something--and fast.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .


	16. Matters of Life and Death

Disclaimer:  You've probably memorized it by now. I don't own Pokémon or "The Shining" or all that good stuff.  Sorry I've taken some scenes directly from the book and mini-series, but most of it is mine.

Last time, Ash and Misty found themselves with bigger problems on the hands.  Ash is trapped upstairs surrounded by ghost-Growlithe, while Misty and Team Rocket are succumbing to the wrath of the mallet-wielding Brock.

Summary:  Can Ash, Misty, and Team Rocket save Brock from the wrath of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel?  Or will they meet their painful fate there?

Midnight!  Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 16:

Matters of Life and Death

            Ash moaned fearfully as the Growlithe approached him slowly, their fire-filled eyes concentrated on him.  Downstairs, Misty was crying out desperately to him, and he felt horrible not being able to help.  Worse, he had no idea what was happening.

            Pikachu looked up at Ash.  "Pika!  Chu pika pi pika pikachu!"

            Ash looked questioningly at Pikachu.  "They're. . .they're not real?" he asked, hoping that he had heard correctly.

            With tear-filled eyes, Pikachu nodded.

            Suddenly, Ash looked up at the Growlithe sternly, a spark of determination illuminating in his eyes.  This only made the mad dogs growl louder, barring their razor sharp teeth at their intended prey.  Ash closed his eyes tightly along with Pikachu.

            "Not real!  Not real!" Ash began to chant, keeping his eyes closed the whole time.  "They're not really there!  They don't exist!  Not there!"

            He repeated this for about ten seconds, trying to focus on his purpose.  His heart pounded the whole time, scared to open his eyes.  Finally he did, and with a small exclamation of happiness, saw that the Growlithe had vanished.

            "Hey, that's all I have to do!" Ash exclaimed.  "If I don't believe in them, then they won't bother us!"

            "Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, smiling.

            Ash got up and let Pikachu down.  "Come on, Pikachu, now we have to save Misty!"

            With that, Ash bolted towards the staircase.  He reached it and turned on his heels, then descended two steps at a time.  The happiness he had experienced moments ago was now replaced by fear again, but also by boldness.  He knew how to beat the hotel now, and he was going to take major advantage of that.

            Halfway down the stairs, he froze to see Brock smiling up at him, holding a mallet in his hands.  The look on Brock's face sent shivers up Ash's spine, but he managed to smile, happy to see his friend awake again.  

            "Hey, Brock," Ash said, his thoughts focused once again on Misty.  "What's the matter?  What's happening?  Why is Misty screaming? Is she hurt?"

            "Ash!  Run!" Misty called.  Ash's head suddenly shot up, and he looked back down at Brock, who began to hold the mallet out in front of him.  His eyelids flew open in fear.  "He's going to kill you, Ash!  Run!!!"

            "W--What?" Ash shuttered.  

            All of a sudden, Brock swung the mallet at Ash, missing him by inches.  Ash screamed.

            "Oh my God!" he shouted.  "What are you doing, Brock?!"

            Brock started after him, and Ash immediately turned and ran.  Now he knew.  He looked over his shoulder a couple of times to see Brock a few feet in back of him, the mallet raised high above his head.  The glare in Brock's eyes of hatred convinced Ash that this was no joke, and even if it was, it was certainly not a funny one.

            "Pikachu! Thunderbolt now!" Ash cried, and Pikachu hit his intended bulls-eye dead-on.  Brock groaned loudly as the electricity filled his body, and he fell to one knee at the top of the stairs.  Ash ran on, never stopping and not looking back.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Misty had stopped screaming to Ash as soon as she heard silence from upstairs. That was no good, though.  She had stopped crying minutes before, for she had no more tears to shed.  Now that Brock was gone for a while, she had to stop concentrating on herself, and start concentrating on saving Ash.  Hopefully, by the grace of God, it would not be too late.

            Misty looked over at Team Rocket, and began to drag herself over to them.  The pain in her leg where Brock had struck her with the mallet was not going away, but it did fell a bit better.  She groaned every time she moved it, however, even if it was just a little.  She was afraid to think of what standing on it would be like, but she had no time for that.

            Finally reaching Team Rocket, she started to nudge Jessie.  She had only been hit once, and Misty found that she was her best chance.

            "Jessie, wake up!" Misty said, moaning a little.  She shook Jessie's back desperately.  To her relief, Jessie murmured quietly and opened her eyes.

            "Oh thank God!" Misty exclaimed, a smile spreading across her face.  It had been the first time she smiled in an hour.  "Thank God you're okay! I never thought I'd be so happy to see you."

            Jessie sat up and groaned, holding her arm.  "What's happening?" she asked, her face winced up in pain.  "What's the matter with your friend?"  

            Misty's eyes started to well up in tears.  "That's not Brock anymore. Come on, you have to get up.  He's gonna kill Ash!  He's gonna kill my friend!"

            Jessie rolled over and sat up on her knees.  She held her arm closely to her side.  "What's happening?" she asked again.

            "I don't know," Misty replied.  "And I don't think I'll ever know."

            Jessie looked down at James.  "Oh my God, James!" she screamed, horrified.  "No!"

            Misty dragged herself over to the opposite side of James, and helped Jessie roll him over onto his back.  He was undoubtedly unconscious, and Jessie searched desperately for a pulse.  She sighed in relief when she found that he had one, and that it was steady.  James was breathing very softly, but nonetheless he was breathing.  Jessie looked up at Misty and smiled, and Misty smiled back.  Both had feared the worst after seeing what Brock had done to the teen.

            Jessie focused back on James and began to shake him.  "James!  James!  Please wake up!"

            Misty joined in on nudging James, very forcefully.  James was not awakening, and in a panic Jessie began to shake him harder.

            "James!  Please, you have to wake up!  You have to!"

            "What's happened?"

            Misty and Jessie turned to see Meowth limping over to them, walking on all fours.  He had a look of terror in his face.

            "James isn't waking up!" Jessie said, tears starting to fall from her eyes.  "I. . .I don't know what to do. . ."

            "Jessie, calm down," Misty said, putting a hand on hers. She smiled reassuringly.  "He'll be okay."

            Still, Jessie looked down at James.  Suddenly, she began to breathe in heavy puffs, and a look of anger came over her face.  "James, wake up, damn you!" she shouted, slapping her partner sharply in the face.  "Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!"  She slapped his face over and over again, as hard as she could.  Misty and Meowth just watched in disbelief.

            "I'm not going to let you die!" Jessie screeched, hitting James again with an ear-stinging slap.  All of sudden, James began to moan and come to.  Jessie gasped in happiness as James' eyes fluttered open.

            "Jessie?" he moaned.  "My--my back. . .my back."

            Jessie smiled and looked up to the sky, mouthing a thank you.  "Shhh. . . ," she said.  "It's okay.  Misty, help me get him over to the corner there."

            Though it was torture on her leg, Misty propped James' back up, and she and Jessie dragged him over to the corner of the room.  James cried silently, his back and side exploding with pain.  When they reached there, Misty let go of James slowly, and Jessie collected him in her arms.  James' eyes closed again, but he was awake.  Jessie rocked back and forth, cuddling James in her arms.  She thanked Misty silently with tears of happiness but fear streaming down her cheeks.  

            Misty propped herself up along the wall, her bad leg twisted around disjointedly.  "I have to save Ash," she said simply, hopping up and down on her good leg in an attempt to support herself.  

            "Wait, I'm going with you," Jessie said, getting up.  "You're not going up there alone."

            Misty wanted to protest, but instead she thanked her and accepted the help.

            Jessie turned to James, who was now sitting up.  "Here," she said, handing him her Pokéballs containing Arbok and Likitung.  "Just in case, okay? I'm going with Misty."

            "Okay," James said softly, accepting the balls into his hands. 

            "Meowth, stay with James," Jessie told him, and Meowth nodded.  Jessie looked back down at James and planted a small kiss on his forehead.  "I'll be back, I promise."

            James nodded, and Jessie stood up, holding her bad arm close to her.

            "Shouldn't we call the police?" Jessie asked Misty, who shook her head.

            "No.  Look outside," Misty answered, motioning towards the windows.  "With the snow they'll never get here on time.  We have to do this ourselves."

            Jessie nodded, taking a deep breath of air.  The two girls made their way first to the kitchen, where Misty grabbed one of the carving knives off the table.  She looked at it sadly, hoping she would not have to use it.  But just to be safe, she grasped it tightly, and she and Jessie took the staircase to the second floor.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Ash ran precariously through the halls of the hotel, Pikachu right beside him.  Behind him, Ash could hear Brock screaming and hitting everything in sight with the mallet.  Ash had no idea what was going on, but all he knew was that he had to get away from Brock -- and fast.

            Ash had taken another staircase up to the third floor, and Brock had done the same.  Not knowing the hallways well, Ash just took turn after turn, hoping to lose Brock in the confusion.  But it was no use, Brock was always right behind. 

            "Oh no!" Ash screamed suddenly, and Pikachu looked up to see that they had met a dead end.  It was, in fact, the Presidential Suite's private corner, and there was no way out.  Ash spun around in fear to see Brock smiling at him, holding the mallet firmly.  

            "Hey, Ash!  What's up?" Brock asked, beginning again with the same friendly routine as he had done with Misty.  

            Ash stood his ground.  "What the hell's the matter with you?" he asked bravely, looking Brock straight in the eye.  

            "You are," Brock replied simply.  "You and your damn journey, that's what.  I'm sick t'hell with you, ya know that?"

            Ash was shocked.  "Why?"

            "I'm sick of you thinking you're so damn great! You're not.  I've had more success in Pokémon than you have, and you still get all the attention!  Everything has to revolve around you.  It would be nice once in a while for me to get a break!"

            Ash shrugged fearfully.  "But why this?  Why are you doing this?"

            "Cause you have this hotel and I don't!" Brock replied angrily.  "I deserve it more than you do!  And it wants me, too!  They told me themselves!"

            Although Ash was ready to tell him to take the hotel, he knew that this was not Brock talking to him.  He was not the Brock that he knew, and because of what had already happened, Ash realized that this was just another one of the hotel's tricks.  Somehow the hotel had taken possession of his best friend, and there was no way in hell Ash was going to let that continue.

            "You don't need the hotel," Ash told Brock, looking sincerely into his eyes.  Brock growled and swung the mallet again at Ash, but missing him.  Ash jumped back timorously.

            "Yes, I do!" he contradicted.  "They promised me good things if I had it!  They promised me!"

            Ash took in a deep breath.  "They lie, though."

            Meanwhile, Jessie and Misty searched throughout the halls of the hotel.  Misty was becoming worried, and Jessie put a hand on her shoulder.  

            "Where are they?" Misty asked, her voice cracking, glancing up into the face of her enemy, who had suddenly become her ally.

            Jessie smiled pleasantly.  "Where do _you _think they are?"

            "Huh?"  Misty was confused.

            "You've been  with them for so long.  Just like me and James.  I've been around him so long that I feel I've created, well, a bond with him.  Maybe. . .just maybe you have that same bond with your friends."

            Misty looked to the ground.  She closed her eyes and started to create mental images of Brock and Ash, smiling back at her. Ash and the Brock she used to know.  The sweet, caring, fun-loving Brock, who thought barely of himself ever and would do anything to help his friends. Misty became unhappy, a sweep of melancholy rushing through her body.   Suddenly, the words "president" starting to ring in her head, and she looked up instantly.  "They're at the Presidential Suite!" she announced, and took off, limping on her bad leg.  Jessie followed closely back.

            Ash watched in disbelief as the mallet dropped from hands, gasping in disbelief.  Brock buried head in his hands, moaning and rubbing his forehead neurotically.  Then he looked angrily at Ash.

            "No, you lie!" he bellowed, stumping over to claim his dropped object.  "You're the one who's lying!"

            "No, Brock!  Listen to me!" Ash said. Brock was halted in recovering the mallet as he looked up at Ash.  "The hotel doesn't care about you! It never will!  We care about you Brock!  Me and Misty.  We need you more, you know that!  You know deep down that you don't want to do this.  You're just too afraid to go up against the hotel."

            As if he was shot by a gun, Brock fell to his knees and began to cry loudly.  Ash was still afraid to approach him, but stood looking down worriedly at him.  He suddenly jumped back as Brock looked at him again, his eyes filled with tears.

            "Oh God, Ash, I'm so sorry!" he apologized.  Ash smiled.  He could tell that Brock was all right, that he was telling the truth.  The sincere expression he displayed confirmed that.

            "It's okay!" Ash replied, his voice cracking with small sobs.  "It wasn't your fault."

            Ash dropped down to Brock and hugged him.  Brock gripped his friend tightly.  How could he have done such a thing? Why did he let the hotel, which he accepted now _was_ haunted, take over him? 

            All of a sudden, the two heard heavy footsteps down the hallway.  Raising their heads, they witnessed Misty and Jessie stop abruptly in the hallway, looking down at the kneeling Brock and Ash.  Misty uttered a gasp of bafflement but also of happiness when she noticed Brock and Ash embracing, and the deadly mallet kicked to the side.  

            "Misty?" Brock asked, teary eyed.  

            Misty began to well up in tears as well.  "Brock?  Is that you?"

            Brock nodded slowly, and suddenly broke down.  "I'm so sorry, Misty.  I'm so sorry!"

            Misty smiled joyfully and ran to her friend's side.  She flew down to the floor and hugged Brock, which he returned strongly.  They cried together, Misty burying her head into Brock's chest and Brock gently stroking Misty's hair.

            "I never meant to hurt you, Misty," Brock coughed out in sobs.  "I'm so sorry!"

            "It's okay, Brock," Misty replied, smiling into his face.  "It wasn't your fault, I know that."

            Brock and Misty turned to Ash, who was looking at them emotionally.  Misty extended her arm to Ash and he joined in on the group hug.  Misty felt so relieved to be in Brock's warm arms, arms that weren't trying to hurt her.  She looked over at Ash, who looked back at her with a reassuring smile and a nod.  

            Jessie stood in the entranceway of the Presidential hallway, staring down at the sight before her and fighting back tears.  Up to this point, she had never felt any compassion toward the group of kids she considered her adversaries, but now she felt a sudden rush of caring for them.  Her heart melted.

            Brock started to fell better.  He looked up and Jessie, whose face suddenly turned to fear and uncertainty.  He smiled warmly at her, and slowly but surely, she smiled back.  Nodding to her, Brock looked past her and froze.  Misty and Ash could feel Brock's body tensing up, and they looked worriedly into his face to see what the matter was.

            Although only visible to Brock, the bartender stood directly behind Jessie, shaking his head disappointedly.  "This is not what we agreed on, Brock," he said.  

            "I know," Brock replied out loud, confusing Ash, Misty, and Jessie.  Jessie had spun around to see what Brock was looking at, and when seeing nothing, returned her befuddled gaze to Brock.  

            Misty began to shake.  "Who are you talking to Brock?" she asked, a feel of nausea returning to her stomach in a flash. 

            "Brock, don't let these traitor 'friends' of yours trick you," the bartender said calmly.  "They're lying to you.  They don't care about you Brock.  They're just being nice to you so that you can cook their food for them.  So that you can carry the heavy bag.  They don't want you for a friend, they want you for a slave and pack-rat."

            Brock breathed in deeply.  "Really?  You can sense that?" he asked, his face twitching.

            "Brock?" Ash asked, looking anxiously at him.  His eyes kept switching from Brock's face to behind Jessie, where apparently Brock's attention was drawn to.  Suddenly, by the expression on Brock's face, he could tell that Brock was somehow communicating with someone that only he could see.  He immediately grabbed Brock's arm.

            "Brock, I know you can hear me!" Ash cried, noticing that Brock was paying no attention to him.  "Listen, they're not real!  If you don't believe in them, they won't bother you!  You know that you don't want to listen to them."

            Brock's face became agitated.  He was listening to both Ash and the bartender at the same time (even though Ash did not know this), telling them two contradicting statements.  Finally, he drew his face away from the bartender and looked into the faces of his friends, even Jessie's. He looked at them with hate, but suddenly his expression changed drastically.  Their faces seemed so much more friendly, so more sincere than the bartender's. The urge to grasp the hotel into his possession again was growing intensely, but the attraction to his friends was fighting it like penicillin fights a deadly disease.  Suddenly, he felt torn in two, and had nowhere to go.

STAY TUNED FOR THE EXCITING CONCLUSION!


	17. The Aftermath

Disclaimer:  I don't own Pokémon or "The Shining."  Thank you so much for reading my story.  I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it!  

Midnight! Pokéball Go!

by Spruceton Spook

Part 17:

The Aftermath

            "Brock!" Ash screamed loudly, directing the shout to Brock's ear.  Surprisingly, Brock turned to face him, anger flaring in his eyes.  

            "Brock, listen to me!" Ash shouted firmly.  "Just shut them out of your mind!  Shut them out of your mind and they won't bother you!"

            Misty and Jessie tensed nervously as Brock stared speechlessly at Ash.  Suddenly, he eyes rose and the look of hate slowly faded.  It was replaced almost immediately, however, as Brock turned back in the direction of the bartender.  The invisible fiend jumped back in surprise.

            "Close your eyes, Brock, and it'll go away!" Ash informed, tears spilling out of his eyes.  "You know I wouldn't lie to you!  Never!  We love you, Brock!"

            Misty nodded, even though Brock was not looking at her.  Even Jessie nodded nervously.

            Brock's eyes closed without warning, which send a wave of relief through Ash and Misty's bodies.  Gripping Ash and Misty's hands tightly, which he had not let go of since they first embraced, he clenched his teeth and prayed to God that what Ash was saying was true.  Frightened, he opened them again, and looked past Jessie to see nothing but an empty hallway.

            "Brock?  Brock, are you okay?" Misty asked, extended her hand to his face.  She pulled his head around to meet hers.

            Brock smiled.  "I am now, Misty," he replied with a huge sigh of relief.  "I am now."

            Ash, Misty, and Brock hugged tightly once again.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            Minutes later, the four kids sprinted down the stairs, Misty hobbling along a bit slower.  Every time Brock looked behind at her, his face fell, and he felt like he wanted to die for what he had done.  

            "Misty, here let me help you," Brock said, holding his arms out.

            Misty smiled softly.  "It's okay, I can do it."  But Brock insisted, so Misty allowed him to carry her down to the landing.  Brock squeezed her body lovingly as she smiled into his face.  Her friend was back.  

            Brock was still in shock, nonetheless.  Carrying Misty and noticing that Jessie was not moving her arm greatly agitated him.  He vaguely remembered attacking Team Rocket shortly before; it was so spontaneous that he did not know of the damage that he caused.

            They finally reached the landing of the stairs, and Jessie ran immediately to James.  He sat on the ground in the same position in which they left him, and his face lit up as soon as he saw Jessie.  This quickly changed when he saw Brock.  Jessie could see that he was frozen in fear.

            "No, James, it's all okay now," Jessie whispered, stroking James' hair.  "We--we did it. He's okay now."

            James looked at the Twerp Trio, who smiled affirmatively.  Brock just stared down at the crippled James, and their eyes met.

            "Oh my God, what have I done?" he muttered, cringing back in shock. Misty and Ash were right behind him to support his quivering body.  They wrapped their arms around him and held him tightly.  

            "I'm so sorry," he said again, looking truthfully at James.  Jessie stared down at James' face.  She wanted him to accept the apology, but James looked too phobic, too angry to even hear of it.

            Brock was going crazy with guilt.  He started to whimper softly and James' eyes softened.  He looked up at Jessie, who nodded that Brock was serious.

            James looked back up at Brock.  "It-it's okay," he said ultimately, shifting his eyes to the floor. Jessie knew that James didn't know about the hotel and its power, which she barely knew anything about, either.  But she would tell him as soon as she got the chance, helping him to realize that Brock wasn't who he was at that time.          

            "Guys, we have to get out of here," Ash said suddenly, bringing all of them back to earth.  "Now," he added with great emphasis.

            Without a second thought, Ash and Misty bolted to the caretaker's quarters where they grabbed all of their belongings.  Misty gasped a huge sigh of relief when she found Togepi resting quietly where she had placed him on the bed.  

            "Come on, Togepi, we're leaving," she said, picking up the Pokémon and cradling him in her arms. 

            Coming out of the quarters, Misty collapsed to the ground, holding Togepi up so that not to crush him.  Pain shut from her leg up her spinal cord, making her wince radically.  She had been applying too much pressure on it in the last few minutes of gathering her things.

            "Oh my God, what happened? Are you all right?" Ash asked fearfully, dropping the bags and rushing to help her.

            Misty smiled softly, one eye still clasped shut.  "Just my leg.  It's. . .okay."

            "Here, let me take the bags," Ash offered, and took the three bags that Misty had been carrying.  He left Togepi in her arms, and helped her up.

            Returning to the main lobby, they found Brock and Team Rocket standing in opposite sides of the room.  Both looked at Ash and Misty as they entered, Ash's arms full of bags.  Brock rushed immediately to Ash and took most of the bags.  He was being overly friendly and cautious in that manner around them, hoping that every little thing would make up for what he had done.

      "Let's get out of here before anything else horrible happens," Misty exclaimed, and along with Jessie, James, and Meowth, they exited the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, not glancing back once.  The snow had thankfully stopped, leaving a fresh five inches on the ground. The cold, however, still existed thoroughly, but none of them barely cared at all about it -- Ash, Misty, and Brock especially.

            "Going home," Ash said happily, shaking his head in disbelief.  Tears of joy filled his eyes, and he turned his head to Misty, then to Brock.  They smiled back down at him, and without another word spoken between them, finally began on their way back to Pallet Town.

            They walked on for about an hour or two, Team Rocket walking right beside them.  Jessie had James' arm draped around her shoulder as James staggered on.  Words rarely passed between the two groups, but finally Brock couldn't take staring at James suffering anymore, and offered his shoulder to help support James.  Although James was a bit weary of it, Brock grabbed his other arm and he and Jessie helped the boy keep up.  A few times James had to stop, where Jessie and Brock let him slowly sit on the ground.  Ash and Misty waited patiently for James to regain his energy, and they would be begin again shortly after.

            As the sun began its decent in the western sky, the kids were relieved to discover a small cave in the woods along the road they had been traveling on in the direction of Pallet.  Team Rocket had announced that they were heading that way as well, seeing how it was the closest town with a hospital to attend to James.  It was relieving to hear that considering Ash, Misty, and Brock were confused as to why Team Rocket weren't off on their own.  

            Brock started a small fire in the cave, and although it wasn't the raging, warm fireplace of the Fireside's Warmth Hotel, it satisfied them justifiably.  Misty grabbed a few cans of soup from her bag, and offered some to Jessie, James, and Meowth, who accepted the meal with smiles of gratitude.  The group ate in silence, until Brock broke it after breaking into tears.

            Ash and Misty immediately rushed to his side to comfort him while Team Rocket looked on.  Brock was still in his state of continuous apologies when Misty suddenly professed that she was happy, and couldn't have possibly been happier.  This surprised Brock, but it ultimately calmed him down, knowing that Misty was not mad at him, although she had every reason in the world to be.

            "I'm just glad to have you back," Misty said, hugging Brock tightly.  "I'll never be mad at you, ever."

            Brock smiled and took a sip of his soup with a shaky hand.  He looked around at his friends and Team Rocket, and he suddenly realized that he was happy, too.  He didn't care if he ever saw the Fireside's Warmth Hotel ever again, or any hotel for that matter.  

            After dinner, Brock pulled out the trio's sleeping bags, which Misty took up in a tremendous hug.  Ash laughed and she stuck her tongue out at him playfully.  Ash thanked Brock as he handed him his sleeping bag, and in no time, the five kids and three Pokémon fell into deep slumber by the warmth of the bonfire.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

            The next morning, Ash, Misty, and Brock and Jessie, James, and Meowth stood on the outskirts of Pallet Town at a fork in the road.  It was a beautiful, mild day, and Ash was practically hopping in place, anxious to be home.

            "Guess this is good-bye for now,"  Jessie said almost sadly, smiling softly at the kids.  "I have to get James to the doctor."

            She held James's hand, who was standing beside her a bit hunched over, but supporting himself, a huge improvement from the day before.

            "Well, I hope everything goes okay," Ash said.

            "Pika pika!" Pikachu added, twitching his ears around.

            Jessie and James smiled down at Pikachu, then returned their gazes to Ash, Misty, and Brock.  

            Brock looked sadly at the ground.  "I'm sorry," he said again, nervously shifting his eyes to Team Rocket.  "If the bill's high. . .I'll--I'll pay.  I promise."

            Jessie waved her hand.  "Don't worry.  We have insurance from Team Rocket.  Thank you, though."

            Suddenly, Brock extended his hand to James, who cautiously shook it.  "Take care," he told James, and James nodded in approval.

            "I will," he replied.  

            Team Rocket nodded a good-bye, and turned down the opposite road leading to Pallet Hospital.  

            "Bye!" Misty called to them, waving her hand high.  "Thank you, Jessie," she added, and Jessie turned to wink at her.  

            "Have a nice holiday!" Ash told them, and they returned the wish to them.   Ash could sense now that there had been a change in their relationship, and an important one at that.  He did not totally convince himself that they would not run into them again with the intent of battle, but he felt better about them.  Maybe they would realize that someday they could be friends.  Ash breathed out a heavy sigh, and turned to Ash and Misty.

            "Come on, guys!" he said with a jump.  "I can smell Mom's cooking from here!"

            Misty laughed and pushed him.  "I'm sure you can!" she smiled, and the three headed towards Ash's home.  

            Misty was still limping, but the pain had subsided considerably.  Occasionally Brock would apologize to her, up to the extent where she would simply push him away jokingly, telling him that everything was fine. About half a mile from Ash's house, Misty suddenly popped an interesting question to Ash.

            "What are you going to do with the hotel, Ash?" she asked quietly, tripping all of a sudden.  She grabbed onto Brock's shoulder, who helped her to her feet.

            Ash looked to the ground sadly, but then glanced up to Misty with a small smirk.  "What hotel, Misty?" he asked, a grin spreading across his face.

            Misty lowered her eyes.  "I don't get it."

            Ash shrugged.  "I don't know. It's not mine."

            "What?" Brock asked, shocked.

            "I never signed the deed," Ash declared with a smile.  "As far as I concerned, we were never there.   Mr. Vrenden still owns the damned place."            

              Misty's mouth dropped into an astonished smile, and she shoved him violently, but friendly.  "You little sneak!" she cried.  "Good thinking!  Guess your not that dense, after all."

            Ash snickered and looked at the sky proudly.  Owning a hotel was not his cup of tea, anyway.  He was destined to become a Pokémon Master, and that was all he was concerned about.  He glanced at each of his friends and at Pikachu, who as soon as he saw Ash's smile toward him, hopped into his arms.

            A block away from home, Brock suddenly began to cry.  Ash and Misty looked at each other with worry. It was going to be a while before Brock got back to normal, and Ash and Misty were ready to help him along the way.

            Misty turned to Brock.  "What's the matter, Brock?" she asked softly, putting a hand on his shoulder.

            Brock sniffed back tears and looked to the sky.  "I just realized I left my only photos of Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny in the Presidential Suite!"

            Ash and Misty face-faulted, then immediately returned to their feet.  Exchanging glances of relief and humor, they knew that everything was back to normal.  

THE END

Thanks to all of you who read and enjoyed my story!  I really appreciated all of your wonderful reviews!  This was my first fanfic EVER and I feel, thanks to you, it was a success.  I'll have another story soon, and I hope that you'll like it as well.  But most of all, I want to thank my friend Christine, who convinced me to write this story.  I had a lot of fun!!!!

                                                                                                            ~Spook


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